Everything You Feel
by RhododendronPonticum
Summary: "The most simple of pleasures are always the ones that evade you for the longest times, but someone wise once told me that all good things are worth waiting for in the end." A marvellous year in the lives of the Glee kids.
1. Author's Note

Hey Everyone,

A couple things to say about this fic before you start reading it:

It was written a long time ago, so the level of writing isn't where my writing usually is, so don't be alarmed. It was about a year ago, so it might be different from other things you've read from me.

It's pretty darn long, but the chapters are freakishly short. I can't change that, so you're going to have to just deal with it. Thanks.

It's kind of unrealistic, I realize, but hey, it's a Fanfic. It's not like you've never done it ;)

Yes, I use the word 'fag'. I believe that it benefits the story. I would never use this word in real life. If you disagree with it's use here, then don't read it.

Reviews are immensely appreciated.

Love you guys! Hope you have fun!


	2. Chapter 2

Kurt's POV

In my opinion, not many people could ask themselves the question: 'How would you feel if you found out that your girlfriend lied to you, cheated on you with your best friend, made you pay for her hospital bills, and then waited for someone else to find out the truth and tell you?' and be able to answer it honestly. It might have even been especially hard for someone who had never had, and was never planning to have, a girlfriend in his life. Of course, I made the sacrifice for the one person I _did_ want.

When I was five my mother had told me that in my life there would be one day, where I would be in some irrelevant place at some irrelevant time, surrounded by irrelevant people, and I would look somewhere and see him (my mother had always known I was gay.) And all of a sudden I'd know, I'd just _know_ that this seemingly irrelevant guy would be the one that I wanted to spend the rest of my days next to. It would be love at first sight. It had happened to my mother, and my father, my grandparents, too, and it would happen to me. But no one ever told me it would be a straight guy. Nobody ever warned me that my endless love would be someone who would never be able to reciprocate my feelings.

My day had been the twenty sixth day of the ninth grade. I had been wearing a brand new pair of skinny jeans, and a striped Gucci dress shirt over a tight dark blue v-neck tee. Over my shoulder I carried a navy blue chord shoulder bag (which was _sooooo_ in back then, by the way.) I was walking down the West corridor with an admittedly sassy strut when a tall, muscular guy with an unkempt Mohawk side checked me and sent me flying into the lockers. I rebounded off with only a slight pain in my side, and the lanky boy walking beside Mohawk, (the one with the super-cute red-brown hair, adorable dimples, and scattered freckles,) grabbed Mohawk's shoulder and forcibly said: "Dude! Impulse control!" He then turned to me and gave me a once over, and a sweet smile with a semi-wink that was just a _slight_ bit suggestive (or maybe I had been imagining that part… either way…). My mind instantly kicked into overdrive, skipping from "OMG, is he checking me out?" to "He's so beautiful…" then, "And he's the quarterback!" to "I can't believe he smiled at me!" and "He stood up for me!" and finally "Wow. This is it. He's the one. I'm in love!" At the end of my thought trail I promptly melted into a fashionable puddle of love struck goo at the edge of the lockers. And that, I suppose, is how this all began.


	3. Chapter 3

Will's POV

It still amazes me that people like Sue Sylvester can just turn a cold shoulder to the problems of the kids that she educates everyday. When she sees a problem (say, a pregnant head cheerleader, perhaps) she doesn't try to help out, she makes fun of whoever happens to be standing beside her and then she exterminates the problem. Well, she certainly won't have to worry about it any more! But if you're someone like me, or rather, if you've just been through something like I have, you start to understand that some of these kids are going through things just as hard, or maybe even harder than you have, and they're still young. And sometimes _they_ don't realize that I went through high school too.

So, I kind of see it as a personal responsibility, not to eliminate these kid's problems, but at least know that there's someone here that they can talk to, and try and help if I can. But as I said before, the kids in this school have been so neglected for years, that they just don't even think of it as an option to open up to a teacher. That doesn't stop me from trying, though.

We had taken sectionals last Saturday, and we had been practicing momentously all week long; the kids (er… Rachel) had even suggested extra practices on the weekends. But it was only Thursday, and we were having our regular lunch time rehearsal in the choir room. It started out well enough, but then we got to choreography. Now, Finn Hudson isn't the best dancer in the group, but today he stunk more than usual. Of course I had heard about the whole Quinn and Puck situation, and he had been noticeably down during the week, but today was worse. His hair was messed up, his face was red and blotchy, his eyes were half shut, and he looked like he was coming off a really bad hangover. When everyone else stepped left, he would step right, and when they took three steps back, he would step forward, resulting in him almost being crushed by Mercedes.

"Okay, okay, stop!" I called from my seat a few meters in front of them. As hard as I tried, I couldn't hold back a disappointed sigh. "Guys, you're going to have to do better than this at Regional's! Rehearsal's over. Go grab a bite to eat. See you tomorrow." The kids started to trickle out of the choir room. "Oh, and Finn? Would you mind staying behind for a minute?"

He managed an uncoordinated nod, and walked towards where I was sitting. He sat down next to me.

"Is everything okay, Finn?" I jumped in. "I know about Quinn and Puck and the baby and everything, and I know that you probably think you can get through it yourself, but it's okay to talk it out with someone. You can talk to me, you know."

Finn looked surprised. "Oh no, Mr. Schu… everything's fine. I'm okay."

I raised one of my eyebrows (it's a hidden talent) and stared him down. "Look, Finn, I certainly haven't been in your situation, and I don't think I ever will be, but if I was, I would want somebody to talk to."

Finn nodded, but I suspect it was only because he wanted to get out of there.

"Can you do me a favor, Finn?" I asked. He obviously wasn't ready to open up to me. "I will make you an appointment with Ms. Pillsbury after school today, and I want you to go and talk to her. It can't hurt."

Finn smiled and got up. "Okay. I'll be there, I guess. Thanks Mr. Schu." He started to walk out of the choir room.

"Oh, and Finn?" I called.

He turned around. "Yeah?"

"Alcohol is never a good way to solve your problems." I said with a wink.

He blushed a little before disappearing into the hall. I think that's about when this whole thing began…


	4. Chapter 4

Finn's POV

I'd been sent to Ms. Pillsbury's office a couple of times before, but mostly because Sue got mad at me or caught me and Quinn kissing when we should have been practicing. I wasn't particularly glad that Mr. Schu had forced me to go talk to Ms. Pillsbury today, but there _was _something that I really needed to get off of my chest. After the last bell rang, I walked down to the guidance office. Ms. Pillsbury was sitting at her desk intently scrubbing away at an invisible speck with a disinfectant wipe. She looked up when I came in.

"Oh, Finn, hi," she smiled. Her eyes are _really_ big… "Take a seat."

I did what she told me, and fiddled with my hands in my lap nervously.

"Will told me that you had some stuff going on right now, and that maybe you wanted to talk to someone. So you can talk to me… if you want to… or, you don't have to… but I was in high school too, once, a long time ago…" she rambled.

"Uh," I interrupted her gently. "Would it be alright if I just talked, and you could listen? I just really need someone to listen right now."

Ms. Pillsbury nodded rapidly and clasped her hands in front of her. I took a deep breath and started.

"So, obviously you know about the whole thing with Quinn. I was pretty mad at first… she knew that it was Puck's and she made it sound like _we _were going to be a family. And Puck and me, we used to be best buds… like, since we were eight, you know? But I really thought that baby girl was mine, and I loved her. Well, I guess I didn't love _her_ as much as the idea of her, because I've never really seen her, right? It may sound bad, but I don't any more, because she isn't mine. I would love her still if she were mine. Anyway, I'll never go out with Quinn again, and I don't really talk to Puck anymore, but that's okay, because even though I'm not friends with them I still respect them. Everyone thinks I should still be screwed up over the whole thing, but I'm not. I'm kinda… over it. But that's not why I'm here…"

Ms. Pillsbury squinted at me, which made her eyes about as big as a normal person's. I didn't speak for a minute. I couldn't believe I was actually saying this out loud.

"I'm in love with someone." I could feel my face turning red already. This wasn't like me at all. Ms. Pillsbury almost reached for one of her pamphlets, but instead she put her hand back in her lap and put on her 'I'm listening to you' face again.

"Who?" she asked. "It's Rachel, isn't it? You two have been staring at each other for a while now…"

I cut her off before she could go any further. "It's not Rachel," I said, making a face. "I don't like Rachel, she likes me. She throws herself at me! Besides, if it were Rachel, I would have made a move by now…"

"Finn, who is it?" she pressed kindly.

I took another breath and let it out, trembling. "It's Kurt."

Her eyes went wide again. "Kurt? Kurt Hummel? I didn't know you were…"

"Gay? I'm not."

"Then how…?"

"I'm not attracted to other guys. It's just him. I don't know why. I guess after I found out about the baby I kinda freaked out. He was the only one who was there for me, you know? I didn't have any guy friends that I could talk to anymore, and he was always there… like, my shoulder to cry on and stuff. He talked it out with me and convinced me to come back to school. If it weren't for him, I probably wouldn't… even be here. And I think he's really beautiful," I tried not to smile, but I couldn't help myself. "More beautiful than any of the girls here. I just want to… you know, tell him or something, but I don't know how. And Mr. Schu always says that the best way to tell someone something is through song, and believe me, I would if I had the courage. For one thing, if we started going out or whatever, all the guys on the team would probably make fun of me, and slushie me, and call me a fag…"

"Finn, don't sacrifice what you want for the sake of popularity. If you think you'd be happy with Kurt, then you have to trust that the happiness you could find together would be better than the happiness you could get from _those_ people." She wrinkled up her nose when she said that.

I held my hands open on my lap. "I know, I know, but that isn't the problem. I don't think he likes me like I like him. I'm afraid he'll reject me, like; maybe I'm not good enough for him or something. Not enough of a fashion sense, maybe?"

Ms. Pillsbury chuckled. "What you're wearing now looks fine," she gestured to my button down shirt.

"Yeah," I said. "Kurt picked it out for me."

"Oh."

"I just don't know what to do. I really don't want to ruin our friendship… he's like, the only real friend I've had in a really long time."

"Well, the only one who can really decide what to do is you, Finn. If you think that telling Kurt how you feel about him is worth the risk, then that's great, but if you think that he just wants to be friends right now, you have to respect his feelings, and not be selfish. I can tell you really care about him. You'll figure out what to do."

She smiled warmly at me and put her hand over mine, which was actually a pretty big thing, considering she's all OCD and stuff. More teacherly caring-ness… I'd been getting a lot of that today. She took her hand off and reached for her disinfectant wipes.

"Thanks, Ms. P," I said as I walked out, leaving her with that confused 'The quarterback is in love with the gay kid?' look on her face.

I guess that's where it all kinda started…


	5. Chapter 5

Kurt's POV

After last period on Thursday, I realized that I had forgotten my scarf in the choir room after rehearsal. Normally, I would have waited until Friday's Glee practice to get it, but this wasn't just _any_ scarf we're talking about here… this was my brand new Giovanni 2nd Collection scarf that I had, by some rare miracle, found at the mall while on a shopping spree with Mercedes. What if somebody took it? The thought was too much to bear, so after the bell I booted it down to the choir room. I was driving Mercedes home today, and I didn't want to keep her waiting.

The choir room door was unlocked, so I burst in, only to find Mr. Schu hunched over his desk looking at sheet music. He heard me and looked up.

"Oh, hey Kurt," he smiled. He must use _a lot_ of product to keep that hairstyle up. "Do you need something?"

I started mentally scanning the room, and quickly answered, "I just forgot something…" I walked over to the place where I had taken my scarf off, but it wasn't there. Instantly, I got down on all fours and started crawling all over the floor. I couldn't bear to lose this scarf… they'd probably be out of inventory by now and no one else in this whole school had anything from the Giovanni 2nd Collection! But the soft red material was nowhere to be found. Frustrated, I plopped down in one of the chairs and let out a half sob, hanging my head in my hands.

"Is everything okay, Kurt?" Mr. Schuster asked softly. That was about when I burst out in tears. I had no idea why… I mean, yeah, I wanted my scarf back, but even _I _wouldn't freak out like this over a fashionable accessory.

"I…lost my… s-sc-scarf!" I managed between anguished sobs.

"Is this it?" Mr. Schuster asked, holding up, sure enough, my lost scarf.

I continued sobbing and nodded. Mr. Schu got up from his desk and walked over to give it to me. Oh, how I hate crying! It would make my face all blotchy, and my eyeliner would run, and I'd come out of here looking like a complete mess! I grabbed my scarf and clutched it to my chest protectively. But I _still_ couldn't stop crying.

"What's wrong, Kurt? This isn't just about the scarf, is it?" it was more of a statement than a question. "Is there something else going on, that's stressing you out, maybe? You can talk to me, you know."

I couldn't seem to catch my breath, I was sobbing so hard. I was going to be here for a while… Mercedes would be pissed.

"I…I'm just… really… really… over-e-emotional… right…now…" I forced out.

"Why is that?" Mr. Schu pressed. God, he really needed better pants.

This time I waited until I had stopped crying like a maniac. I had been reduced to streaming tears and soft cries every once and a while.

Sniffling, I said, "Well, for starters, I'm in love with the quarterback, and he thinks that the only reason I spend time with him is because I'm helping him get through his baby drama, and I just realized that it's easier loving him from afar than it is from up close, and I can't do anything about it because I know he doesn't feel the same way about me and he never will." I said it nonchalantly, like it were the most natural thing in the world.

"Wait," Mr. Schuster sat back in his chair, "you're in love with _Finn_?"

I rolled my eyes. "Surprise, surprise, gay kids have crushes too!"

He gave me that look that my Dad always gives me when I use sarcasm on him.

"Well," he said heroically, "I don't know anything about crushing on the quarterback, but I do know how it feels when you feel something for someone that they may not feel for you. But you don't know that for sure yet, right? So, my advice is: tell him how you feel. If he rejects you, then you're too good for him." Mr. Schu smiled and clapped me on the back (he knew better than to tousle my hair; he'd learned from the last time he did that and I nearly attacked him with my hairspray.)

"Thanks, Mr. Schu."

"No problem, Kurt. I hope it all works out for you."

I got up to leave (I'd really be dead if I kept Mercedes waiting any longer.) I _did _want to tell Finn how I felt, I've wanted to do that ever since the ninth grade. But I knew that I only had one chance, and if I did it at the wrong time, or screwed it up, that Finn wouldn't be friends with me anymore. My Mom used to say that true love works out no matter what, but, as much as I hate to admit it, I'm a bit of a skeptic. I mean, a gay boy telling the quarterback of the football team that he's in love with him may not go over that well. But I REALLY wanted to. I guess I'm just not that confident. I walked away deciding that I would settle for what I had.


	6. Chapter 6

Will's POV

After my conversation with Kurt I finished grading my papers and then drove home. By home, I mean Emma's condo… er, Emma and my condo, I guess, since now that I've moved in officially I offered to pay half the rent. Of course, no one knew that we were together… yet.

When I got there, Emma was already home, standing at the stove cooking spaghetti and homemade pasta sauce. I came in quietly and smiled when she didn't notice I was there; she was singing Super Trouper to herself as she swayed back and forth in front of the oven. Sometimes, it amazed me how easy life with Emma was. I guess it makes sense, since all I'd ever known was Terri's constant criticisms and pushing for me to do better. I had finally found somebody who loved me for who I was.

I snuck up behind Emma and wrapped her in a hug. She gasped, but she didn't scream. Instead, she turned around, smiled that adorable smile, and gave me a kiss, instantly relieving all the stress of the day.

"Hey," she whispered. "Hope you're in the mood for spaghetti."

Another reason why I loved Emma: she was an _excellent _cook. She took her time and she cared about what she was doing. Unlike Terri used to. But I didn't dwell on the issue. I hardly ever brought Terri up anymore, partly because I didn't want to think about her, and partly because I knew that Emma was deathly afraid of being classified as the rebound girl. If only she knew… she was so much more than a rebound girl. In her I'd found something special that I'd never experienced before.

I set my stuff down in the front hallway, and took a seat at the kitchen table so I could watch Emma cook.

"Have a good day, honey?" she asked, still facing the food.

"Yeah," I said, "but seeing you made it a million times better." I could feel her smiling from across the room. "Glee was good, I sent Finn in to you, taught a few more classes, and then I graded some papers, and finally dealt with the problems of young love."

Emma sighed knowingly. "More schoolgirl crushes?"

"No, no. Not on me this time, and it's more of a… school_boy_ crush."

"What do you mean?"

"After school today Kurt Hummel came into the choir room looking for a lost scarf or something, then out of nowhere he just bursts into tears."

"Because he couldn't find his scarf?" Emma asked.

I shrugged. "Well, that's what I thought at first. I mean, it wouldn't be such a stretch; he does love his clothes. But the scarf was on my desk all along… I had picked it up when I noticed it on the floor, and after he got it back he was still bawling like a colicky baby."

"Uh oh. Who is it?"

"Finn Hudson."

Emma turned around and raised her eyebrows. "_Really_?"

"That's the thing," I carried on. "I see them together so often, and it seems like they really care about each other. Kurt doesn't think he has a chance."

"Oh. Well that's too bad," Emma went back to cooking, but I could tell something was bothering her. A few moments later she turned back to me.

"Will? If you knew something that could help make your students happy, maybe hand in hand with a little scheming, would you use it to their advantage, even if it may seem inappropriate for an educator to be meddling in these things?"

"Emma…" I said slowly "…what is it?"

"Well, technically this is confidential, but since you are fellow teaching staff, you can keep a secret, and I feel you have a right to know, I'll tell you. When you sent Finn Hudson into talk to me today, you assumed he was upset because of finding out about the paternity of Quinn's baby."

I nodded my head. After all, if I were him, I'd still be upset.

"He wasn't," Emma revealed. "Finn claims he's moved on. His problem was that he was in love…"

Suddenly, I got it. Emma saw the gleam in my eyes and beamed right along with it.

"…With Kurt Hummel."

"Let me guess…" I ventured. "He wants to tell him, but he's afraid that his social status will drop to rock bottom, or that he'll get rejected."

Emma nodded. "They just need a push in the right direction, Will. They're both good kids, and I think they deserve to be happy. They deserve each other. Now we just have to make a plan to get them to tell each other the truth…" she smiled charmingly.

I stood up from my place at the table and strode across the kitchen to Emma. I wrapped her up in my arms again, and whispered in her ear, "Well, I think we'll make the perfect match-making team. You're so brilliant." I kissed her on the cheek.

"Oh," Emma remembered, "and Finn said something about singing your true feelings…"

"In that case," I said, "I have an idea."


	7. Chapter 7

Kurt's POV

At rehearsal Friday after school, I could barely look at Mr. Schu without feeling embarrassed. It was never a good idea to go psycho in front of a teacher. He just kept smiling at me, like he was trying to make me feel comfortable or something, but it came off as kind of creepy, mostly because of that thing he did to me while he sang 'Bust A Move,' and because of the fact that I can't keep my hormones under control most of the time. I don't get much play, okay?

We got halfway through practice by rehearsing 'She's So High' (a possible number for Regionals.) It was an okay song, except for the fact that Finn got lead vocals for it and I couldn't seem to stop thinking about him singing it to me. Stupid, right? I'm _sooooo _in over my head.

Anyway, Mr. Schuster ran it about ten more times than it needed to. Finn had that thing _down._ When we all started to roll our eyes instead of singing our parts, Mr. Schuster picked up on it.

"Ok guys, Finn that was great. Just keep practicing all the time okay? It'll be great for Regionals." Everyone beamed and slapped each other high fives, though I'm not sure whether it was because the song sounded great, or that we finally got to stop practicing it. I swiveled in my seat and gave some to my gal, Mercedes

"Now, on to our next order of business, I want us to try out a new number for Regionals. It's called Nolita Fairytale."

I perked up, but just a bit. My iPod was covered in Vanessa Carlton's stuff.

"…And," Mr. Schuster continued, "I want to give the lead…" the anticipation built, but deep down we all knew it was going to Rachel, or maybe even Quinn, "…to Kurt."

Mercedes, Artie, Tina, and Finn all called out their encouragements, and my eyes grew as wide as those cheesy paper plates they use at family barbeques. I'm pretty sure my mouth was hanging open too. Was this because of what happened yesterday? I sat there, paralyzed, until Mercedes gave me a hard smack on the back

"Get goin', boy!"

It was then I realized that Mr. Schu was motioning for me to go up to the front of the room. I got up, numbly, and walked to where he was standing. I leaned in close.

"This better not be some sort of sympathy card you're playing here, because it won't work, and I won't accept charity."

Mr. Schuster chuckled. "It's not sympathy, Kurt. I was going to give you this solo before what happened last night, and I'm giving it to you because I think that you'll sing it the best. Plain and simple," he said quietly, so the rest of the club wouldn't here. I rolled my eyes, just for the show of it, and then repositioned myself at the front of the room as Mr. Schu handed out sheet music to the rest of them. Rachel, even though our relationship had come very far since the whole 'Defying Gravity' fiasco, looked _really_ pissed. I could read her like an open book, and subconsciously started my 'Seconds Till Rachel Starts Bitching' countdown.

Five…

Four…

Three…

Two…

"Mr. Schuster! Don't you think that this particular vocal part is more suited to my type of voice, and cultural background? I mean…"

Mr. Schu cut her off. "Don't want to hear it, Rach. _Kurt_ is singing this song at Regionals, and that's final. Now, I don't want to hear any more out of any of you." he pointed at me. "Kurt, take it away. Oh, and Finn? Do you mind starting out the introduction on the drum set?"

Finn picked up the drumsticks. "No prob, Mr. Schu." Finn started the 30 second percussion introduction while I nervously eyed the countertenor sheet music that Mr. Schuster has placed in my hands. Before I knew it, the drum solo was over and I came in, clear and strong (er… I hope.)

"_I know, you know… we don't… see,_

_And so our, truth waits, patiently._

_I walk the streets with a song in my head," _for this part I strutted across the floor in rhythm to the drumbeat, prompting giggles from the cheerleaders and a thumbs up from Mercedes.

"_I got my toes on my pup at the foot of my bed,_

_I'll take the glitz back; I want the soul instead,_

'_Cause I've found some kind of fairy… tale." _

I poured my whole heart and soul into this song, because I knew that was why Mr. Schuster had picked me and not Rachel. Rachel might have been more talented than me (slightly, I suppose. I mean, come on! There are tons of sopranos out there, but there aren't many countertenors!) But, I could make this song come to life.

"_I used to, hover, outside my truth_

_Always worried of what I knew._

_They take a way my record deal."_

"_Go on, I don't need it," _the rest of the club sang along with me, creating the perfect blend of voices.

"_Spent the last two years getting to what's real," _I was actually surprising myself. I had never been this good before, though admittedly that might have been the product of shutting myself in my room and singing sappy love songs while reveling in heartbreak every night.

"_And now I can see so clear,"_ and I could tell Mr. Schu was impressed, too. My face broke out in a mile-wide smile. I had never even dreamed of having a solo… for REGIONALS (!) no less.

"_I hope you feel just like I fe-e-eel, cause I've found some kind of fairytale!"_

On my high, I finished the song, adding a few Beyonce twirls here and there. When the last notes were pounded through the room by Finn on the drums, everyone stood up and cheered. My cheeks flushed red. My first standing ovation! Out of the corner of my eye I caught Finn staring, and also standing and clapping like crazy. _Bestill my pounding heart!_

I quickly took my seat again, before it got out of hand. Once the clapping had ceased, Mr. Schu spoke up again.

"Kurt, that was phenomenal! And Finn, keep working on that drum solo, and we'll prerecord it for Regionals. Wow guys, that was just awesome. Well, I guess that's it. Have a good weekend, and we'll start the choreography for 'She's So High' and 'Nolita Fairytale'. See ya, guys!"

Finn got up from the drum set and walked towards me. He managed a smile, and just that meant the world to me.

"That was so freakin' awesome Kurt! I didn't even know you could sing like that!"

I chuckled. "There's a lot you don't know about me then, Mr. Hudson."

Finn played with hands before looking up at me again. "Are you doing anything this weekend?"

"Just my regular weekend girl time with Mercedes, on Saturday, but other than that I'm free. Why?"

"Oh, I just… um… if you want to hang out… call me." Then he was gone. I smiled sadly at his back as he left the room. I knew what he really meant: that he wanted me to come over so we could talk about Quinn and Puck and all of the problems in life. The problem was I didn't know if he actually wanted to talk to _me_, or if I was just the only one who would listen.

Stuck between the high of singing that song, and the low of being in love with a hopelessly straight guy, I walked over to Mr. Schu's desk.

"Kurt," he said again, "that was amazing!"

"Mr. Schuster," I said, my self confidence slipping away by the second, "I can't sing that song. It has a _high G_ in it. You heard me sing 'Defying Gravity!' I can't even hit a high F!"

"First of all, Kurt, you _just_ hit the high _G_. Four times. Perfectly and amazingly."

"It was a fluke," I countered quickly.

"And I heard you throw the competition with 'Defying Gravity,' I never heard you sing it like I know you can that day. I don't know why, and I won't ask, but I know you lost on purpose for some reason, because I heard you the day before the diva-off rehearsing in the auditorium, hitting the high F, holding it, and hitting it over and over again!"

I looked down, ashamed. No one was supposed to find out about that!

"You just have to believe in yourself, and the rest will fall into place."

I massaged my temples, nodded, and started to walk out the door.

"Hey Kurt?"

"Yeah?"

"There's one more thing I wanted to talk to you about."

_Uh oh._

"What?" I stood coldly with my back still to the Spanish teacher.

"I was thinking about what you told me yesterday…"

_Oh hell no! If this is about Finn, I might just have a bitchfit! _

"…About Finn."

_Nuh uh. Tell me he did NOT just go there!_

"And I just wanted to say that I think you should try to tell him how you feel about him. And if you don't think you can say it to his face, why not try singing it to him?"

_Oh my God. Did Mr. Schuster really just offer me advice on my love life? This felt so wrong. This was really wrong!_

"…I could help you find a song, and maybe you could sing it at the next Glee practice next week? No one would know the meaning but you and Finn… and me, of course. But if you wanted help…"

There were SO many things I wanted to scream at him right now, but I managed to repress my anger with clenched teeth. What right did he have meddling with my personal life just because I told him I had a crush?

"Thanks, but no thanks, Mr. Schu," I mumbled as quickly and politely as I could before rushing out the door. I slammed it behind me and caught my breath by leaning up against one of the walls. I looked around the halls frantically to make sure no one had been around to hear Mr. Schuster's totally inappropriate and misguided offer. I walked out to the parking lot, even more heartsick than I'd been before.


	8. Chapter 8

Emma's POV

Right after school ended, I locked my office (disinfected the doorknob) and then headed to the parking lot to wait in my car, just as Will and I had planned. When my cell phone started ringing fifteen minutes later, I knew that Will's chat with Kurt must not have worked out. I wiped the phone off with a tea towel and then answered it. Will really was helping me with my… disorder… but what can I say? Old habits die hard.

"Hello? Will, is that you?"

I heard a familiar sigh from the other end. "Yeah, it's me. Kurt's not going for it… he didn't even give me a chance to plead my case; he just stormed out as soon as I hinted at it. I think we ought to move on to Plan B."

I smiled. Matchmaking with Will was fun. "Okay. I'll see you in a few minutes. If this doesn't work, on to Plan C, right?"

Will chuckled. "You betcha. I'll see you in a while. Love you."

"Love you, too." My heart started to melt so fast that I almost forgot to get out of my car and stop Finn, who was currently cutting across the parking lot. By the time I remembered, he was starting his car. I shot out of the vehicle and sprinted across the parking lot.

"Finn! Wait up!"

He didn't hear me, but he saw me running, shut off his car, and rolled down the window.

"Hi, Ms. Pillsbury. Did you… need something?" he said uncertainly.

"Yes," I said, breathing heavily. "In fact, I wanted to talk to you about the conversation we had yesterday." I saw Finn tense up immediately. Poor kid… he was so confused.

"I thought… that maybe I could offer my advice… since I am the Guidance Counselor. I counsel. And give guidance. So… I think that you should tell Kurt how you feel about him."

Finn gave me a sad half-smile. "Thanks for the advice, Ms. Pillsbury, but I really don't think it would work out." He reached down to start the car again, but I reached in through the window and put my hand on his arm to stop him. Thank God I had WetWipes in the car.

"Finn, sometimes you just have to trust people," I said gently. "Sometimes other people can see what's going on around you better than you can. I think you should at least try once."

Finn sank deeper into his seat. "What do I do?" he mumbled under his breath.

"I think you should do what you thought you should do… sing it to him. I talked to Wi… er, Mr. Schuster, and he said that he would be willing to give you some time during Glee to sing the song…"

"Wait!" Finn sat up straight again, "you told MR. SCHU?"

"No! No I didn't!" I lied. I had to be done. "I used hypotheticals to explain the situation."

Finn furrowed his eyebrows. "I don't know that word."

"It means I didn't tell him about Kurt."

"Oh. Well, thanks."

"Anyway," I continued with my preset speech, "you wouldn't have to tell anyone you were singing it to him. If he feels the same way, he'll just know. Okay? I believe in you, Finn. Telling someone the truth is one of the hardest things you'll ever have to do in life, but most of the time it's worth it. Okay?" I smiled at him, and this time I meant it.

I stood there waiting while he thought it out. Several long, drawn-out moments later, he rested both of his hands on the steering wheel, breathed out, and said, "Okay. I'll do it."

"Good," I said. "Mr. Schuster did say one thing, though… 'If Finn plans on singing something at the next rehearsal, just make sure it's been practiced and polished.'"

Finn smiled: a smile that I hadn't seen for at least a month out of him. A _real_ smile.

"Thanks a lot, Ms. Pillsbury. I probably wouldn't even be thinking about doing this if it weren't for you." he started the car and started to back out of the parking lot. When he was on the road, he called back out the window: "I'll make sure it's great, don't worry!"

When he was gone, I looked around to make sure no one was there, and then did a victory fist pump. We wouldn't have to resort to Plan C! This was good, because Plan C _really_ sucked. I walked over to where Will was standing against the wall to tell him what had just happened.


	9. Chapter 9

Finn's POV

I drove home Friday night a little weirded out. What exactly had I just agreed to? By the time I got home and saw what a mess my room was, the only thing I wanted to do was forget about all of this. I felt a little guilty for not staying and spending time with my Mom, but as soon as I got home and left my backpack in the front hall, I left and drove over to Matt's house for the football party that he was hosting. I wasn't planning on going, but I _am_ the quarterback, and it was expected. I didn't want to disappoint anyone.

When I got there, the party was going full-blast already. There was booze, girls, and loud music. I tried my best to blend in with the crowd, drinking a single beer and shoving potato chips into my mouth every few minutes. I was doing fine just being by myself, until I saw Puck stumble out of the kitchen, him and Quinn attached by the mouth. All I could think of was _'That used to be me.'_

As soon as I finished my beer, I left.

It was only eight when I got in, but, after calling a quick hello to my Mom, I locked myself in my room and fell fast asleep.

I slept until eleven Saturday morning. I would have slept later, but my stomach was growling so loud that it woke me up. I yawned and turned over. I was still in my clothes from last night. Kurt and Mercedes were probably already at the mall right now. Groaning, and thanking God that it wasn't a school day, I pulled myself out of bed very slowly. I felt horrible. These past few weeks had been so busy, so exciting, and also painful. I had the feeling that I always felt when I cried so much that my body ran out of tears. I had just run out of emotions.

I transferred myself from my bed to my desk chair, and hit the power button on my computer. As soon as it was on, I opened iTunes. A lot of people probably thought that before Glee club, I was just some stupid jock that played sports all day and had a six-word vocabulary, but I wasn't. I really love music; I loved it before I was in Glee club, too. In fact, I used to spend whole weekends organizing my thousands of songs into categories on iTunes. It drove my Mom crazy, but it came in handy at times, like it did now.

I clicked on the search box and typed in 'love songs.' Instantly, my whole premade genre of songs popped up. I plugged my headphones into the jack and started playing them one by one, trying to find the perfect song, images of Kurt and his gorgeous smile plaguing my mind.

I went for twenty minutes without any success. None of the songs that I listened to seemed to capture what I felt for him. I was listening to The Fray when my Mom came in with a plate of sizzling bacon and toast.

"Hey, Mom," I ran a hand through my frazzled hair.

"Good morning, Finny. I heard you get up, so I thought I'd bring you up some breakfast." Mom set the plate on the counter and glanced at my computer screen.

"What are you doing, hon?"

Well, there was no use in lying. "I'm looking for a song to sing next week in Glee."

I didn't say I was going to tell the _whole_ truth.

"Oh," my Mom raised an eyebrow. She could see right through me; she always could.

I nodded awkwardly. "Uh, yeah."

My Mom sighed and put the plate next to my computer. "Finn? Just please… _please _don't get hurt again. I… I can't see you go through this again."

I stared straight ahead. I knew there would be tears in her eyes. I couldn't bear to look at her right now.

"Mom, I'll be fine. Don't worry about me, please."

There was a minute of uncomfortable silence.

"Okay," she started to walk out the door. "I'm going shopping. I'll be back at three."

"Bye."

I clicked around on iTunes for at least another hour, picking at my bacon with my fingers. I probably dripped grease all the way onto my hard drive, but I didn't care, because an hour later I found my songs. THE songs. They were so perfect I almost started crying as I listened to them over and over again until they were etched into my brain. I found the sheet music on the internet and printed it out. I spent the next four hours trying to complete an overdue Spanish assignment for Mr. Schu, making sure that all of my shirts weren't inside out for when Mom did the laundry, waxing my snowboard, and (over)using my punching bag. This was going to be a long weekend.

I had just gone down for a quick catnap when my cell phone rang: that Single Ladies ringtone that Kurt had installed. It made my heart flutter every time I heard it.

I snatched off of my bedside table, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes hastily.

"Hello?" I said, trying to keep my voice as even as possible. I could hear the soundtrack from Grease blaring in the background.

"Finn, hi… it's Kurt."

Like I didn't already know.

"Mercedes, turn the music down!" I heard Kurt yelp at Mercedes in the background.

The volume was lowered.

"Sorry about that," Kurt said in his smooth, silky soprano tone. It was one of those statements that was probably accompanied by a glare sent Mercedes's way.

"S'okay. What's up?" I pulled my self up and propped my back against my pillows.

"Not much. I just wanted to see what you were doing this afternoon."

It's funny, how he can make my heart go double time with a simple, everyday statement. And the most hilarious part was he didn't even know he was doing it

I heard Mercedes in the background again. "Who you talkin' to, boy?"

"None of your beeswax," Kurt fired back.

"Again, I'm sorry," he said to me. "You were saying?"

"I was saying that I'm not doing anything. And I want you to come over. I mean… if you… want to…"

"I'll be there in twenty."

"Awesome. Can you stay for dinner?" I knew this would be one of the nights that my Mom cooked instead of ordered take out.

"I don't want to intrude or anything…" Kurt said politely.

"Trust me, you won't be. Please, Kurt…" all of a sudden it sounded a lot like I was begging, but I noticed that I didn't really mind at all.

Mercedes interrupted again. I don't think I could ever be best friends with that girl!

"Oh, hell to the nah! Kurt, don't tell me you got a secret boyfriend you ain't tellin' me about!"

I heard Kurt put the palm of his hand over the phone, but I could still hear him, vaguely.

"Mercedes, please. Like anyone in this stupid cow town would ever bat an eye at me."

It was times like these when I just wanted to come right out and say it. But I knew I couldn't. It would ruin everything.

There was a long silence, and I wondered if he had hung up on me.

"Kurt?"

"Yes?" Yes!

"So… you're coming?"

Mercedes again: "Who are you and why you talkin' to my man Kurt?"

I guess that was meant for me. Kurt didn't bother covering the phone this time.

"Mercedes! Watch the road, for God's sake! And stop yelling at my phone! If you crash my baby, you're buying me a new one!"

I could almost feel Mercedes rolling her eyes. "Your dad has twelve," she said.

"Whatever," Kurt said to her. And then to me: "I'll be there."

He turned to Mercedes again. "Mercedes, can you drive me to…" there was a surrendering sigh… "Finn's house?"

I had to draw the phone away from my ear when Mercedes squealed.

"Kuuurt… you got somethin' you ain't tellin' me?" she said suggestively. I almost smiled.

"NO, Mercedes. Finn and I are only friends. Completely platonic. Trust me."

"Kurt! You've been spending a lot of time with him lately. Have you tol…"

Suddenly, someone cranked the volume even louder than it had been before.

"See you soon, Finn. Bye." Kurt spoke so fast I could barely understand him, and in less than a second I was listening to a dial tone. Frowning, I threw the phone on my bed and got up. Normally I would have been wondering what the quick hang up was all about, but I didn't have time to worry. I had to clean this place up! I tossed discarded clothes into my laundry basket, straightened the piles of paper on my computer desk best I could, threw out a whole arms load of garbage (mostly old food) and stuff, and shoved the rest under my bed. After I finished straightening my comforter, I called down the stairs to my Mom:

"Mom… just so you know, Kurt's coming over for dinner tonight!"

It wouldn't be a problem; my Mom loved Kurt. I guess he was the only one of my friends who was nice to her. Except for Quinn, of course, but that didn't count anymore.

Ten minutes later I was sitting on a bed in a pretty clean room, if I do say so myself. It was then that I realized that the last person I had ever cleaned up my room for was Quinn, whenever she used to come over. It was about then that I realized that I was royally screwed.


	10. Chapter 10

Kurt's POV

Mercedes was speeding down a deserted suburban road in my brand new red sports car, gripping the steering wheel so tight that the tips of her fingers looked like they were melded to my heated steering wheel cover.

"Turn left," I muttered as we reached an intersection. Mercedes obliged. We continued down the road until we reached Finn's house: a 70's style three story on the corner of the street.

Without a word, I gathered my purchases and my shoulder bag. I got out of the car and regarded my best friend coldly.

"You can take the car home," I said flippantly. "I'll pick it up at school on Monday, and I can drive you home. Thanks for the ride, 'Cedes."

"Kurt…" she sounded disappointed. I internally rolled my eyes. I knew what was coming next… I'd heard it a million times before.

"Kurt, I know you like him, but you gotta remember that he's straight. Don't get yourself hurt if he can't reciprocate your feelings."

I turned back to her and pursed my lips. To me, right now, she was just another disapprover.

"Mercedes, how many times to I need to tell you that I've given up? I don't need to hear this right now, because it just makes things harder. Finn needs a friend, and that's what I intend on being for him. I've put my desires aside, and hearing about it just makes it more painful. You've gotta trust me, okay? I'm a big boy now!"

Mercedes smiled at me sadly. I knew that I shouldn't be going off at her like this, because she was the first person who had actually cared about my feelings in a long time, but I was sick of thinking about this. I just wanted a chance to be near Finn.

"Okay," her smile widened a bit. "I trust you. I just don't want to see you all depressed again, because I care about you. But for what it's worth, I think you should go for it, boy."

I grinned at her. "Thanks, Mercedes. See you on Monday."

"See ya, Kurt," she called as she sped off. "Thanks for the car!"

In a whoosh of discarded fall leaves and the screech of my all season tires on the asphalt, I was left alone in front of Finn Hudson's house clutching seven full shopping bags and a bag filled with notebooks and school assignments.

My feet carried me up to their wooden porch, adorned with floral deck furniture and an old plastic baby swing that Finn had told me he had found in his shed and brought out to give to Quinn before he found out about Puck. Now it sat discarded in the corner, covered in dead foliage. The seat was filled with dirty rain water. I nudged it with my foot, careful not to get any of the muddy water on my white leather shoes. Can you say fashion disaster? The water spilled over the side of the porch, and as it emptied I readjusted it to a more upright position. I figured Finn might want it some day, and it wouldn't do any good if it was covered in mold.

Leaving the swing alone, I ventured up to the door and knocked on it softly. After all, what good is a manicure if your knuckles are a mess?

The door opened milliseconds later, as if Finn had been standing there, waiting for me to arrive. Or maybe he'd heard my conversation with Mercedes…

This thought only occupied my mind for a moment, because as soon as I looked up at Finn, his face erupted into a huge bright grin. The instant I saw it, it turned my mind into mush, and it struck me that this was the first time I had seen him smile… like, really smile, in weeks. Immediately I knew that he hadn't heard a word of what I'd said to Mercedes.

"Hey Kurt!" he said with profound enthusiasm.

I raised an eyebrow. "Have you been taking vitamins from Mr. Schuster's wife again?"

Finn sobered a bit at the comment. "Nope," he said, "Just excited. Mr. Schu is letting me do a solo performance in Glee on Monday. I just found the _perfect_ song."

"Oh," I said, glad that he'd found something to be passionate about, even if it would only last for the weekend. "Do you want me to help you practice?"

"Thanks, but no thanks," he said as he motioned me inside. "Nothing personal, it's just… well… it's kind of a secret."

"A secret?"

"Yeah. Don't worry… you'll hear it on Monday with everyone else in Glee."

I nodded my head as I inhaled deeply, as discreetly as I could. I loved the smell of the Hudson house: it smelled like wood, fireplaces, home cooking, and fresh flowers. Actually, I love everything about the Hudson house. I loved the walls made of knotty pine, I loved the cheesy patriotic pictures, I loved the disorganized kitchen in which something was always cooking. Everything. It felt so homey, so secure, so safe, so… loving, compared to the modernized mansion I lived in with my Dad. That's why I usually insisted on coming here to see Finn instead of inviting him over.

"Do you want to bring that stuff up to my room?" he asked, motioning to my day's purchases.

"Sure," I said, shifting the weight onto my shoulders and starting up the staircase. The worn wood creaked under my feet, and creaked again as Finn followed up behind me.

My favorite part of Finn's house is his room. He'd never bothered to paper over the cowboy/Indian wallpaper of his childhood, which gave his room a cozy, innocent feel. His bed, which was usually unmade and covered in covered in schoolbooks, laid facing his TV and X-Box, and off to the other side of his room, near the window and his Dashboard Confessional poster, was a messy desk with his laptop sitting atop it. It was the room of a typical teenaged boy… but today it wasn't so typical (of Finn, anyway.)

His bed was made, his schoolbooks were neatly piled on his desk, and his TV was off. I unloaded my bags onto the closet door handle.

"Whoa… did your Mom clean your room or something?" I asked in disbelief.

Finn tried to smother a proud smile. "No… I cleaned it myself this morning."

I think my heart nearly stopped. Finn Hudson cleaned his room, but not only that: Finn Hudson cleaned his room because I was coming over. Oh my God.

I searched for something to say to break the lull in the conversation, but I couldn't seem to form any words. Instead, I reached for the shopping bag on the front of my pile.

"I bought something for you at the mall today," I said as I shoved the bag towards him. I noticed his hands are easily two times bigger than my own as the bag was being transferred. I gingerly sat down at the top of Finn's bed and watched as he withdrew the navy blue waist length wool peacoat that I'd found for him at my favorite vintage clothing store.

"I saw it while I was shopping and it made me think of you," I murmured softly as I surveyed his reaction. _Everything I see makes me think of you_, I thought to myself, but didn't dare say it out loud. I was overpowered with a wave of dimply cuteness as Finn slipped his unbuttoned dress shirt off and shrugged the coat on. My assumption had been right: he looked _amazing_ in it.

"Wow, Kurt. Thank you so much… you really didn't have to. I love it!"

He walked over to the bed, and I stood up just in time to be enveloped in a bone crushing hug. I clasped my arms around his neck and burrowed my face into the crease between his neck and his shoulder, breathing in the scent of his skin, caressing the familiar feeling of wool under my fingers, and praying that he didn't notice. The truth was, I could survive on moments like these. Maybe it was better that Finn didn't know how I felt, because I could still have these feelings and pretend that he felt them, too. The only danger was, it was too easy to get caught up.

The hug lasted longer than it probably should have.

When he let go he sat down on the bed beside me. He had that sad puppy dog look in his eyes again. I knew what he was thinking about.

"You miss her, don't you?" I whispered. We both knew I wasn't talking about Quinn. We'd had that conversation before.

"I don't even know why," he shook his head. "I mean, I know she's not mine, and I try to tell myself I don't love her anymore… but I do." His voice faded off, and I knew it was my time to talk.

"It's hard to stop loving someone." I spoke from experience. "But you've got to remember that one day you'll have your own kids with a girl," I tried to suppress a cringe, "that you love that loves you back."

I reconsidered adding the next part, but in the end I did.

"Plus, you deserve to be in that baby's life, and Quinn knows it. Personally, I think you'd be a kickass uncle." I laid a hand gently on Finn's knee. A gesture of reassurance, nothing more. It coaxed a tiny smile.

"That's actually… a good idea. I guess I should probably apologize to Quinn anyway, after the way I reacted. I think that would make it kind of better. But… I can't talk to her without crying like a girl."

"That's okay. You have six months to make your move, remember. Everything's going to be okay."

He put his arms around me again. I nearly fainted.

"Thanks Kurt. You always know how to make me feel better." He released me and took a deep breath. "So… what do you want to do?"

"Your house, your decision. Besides, I chose last time," I chortled as I recalled Finn curled up into a blubbering ball at the end of Moulin Rouge last week.

Finn smiled mischievously. "In that case, I have the perfect thing…"

I couldn't help but beam back as he got up. I needed to make a decision…I would either have to keep on living a dream that was bound to end in pain, tell Finn the truth, which could destroy our entire relationship, or leave the whole thing behind before I got hurt beyond point of return.


	11. Chapter 11

Finn's POV

I still can't believe that I actually got Kurt Hummel… yes, THE Kurt Hummel, to play Halo with me. Once we got past the first issue: yes, it is a video game, not a Beyonce song, he gave in. After two minutes on Level 1, issue two: apparently 'this atrocious game is unnecessarily violent and unnecessarily loud! I am NOT playing this!' But I pouted and whined and got my way. That always works with Kurt. He must have sensitive ears or something. It was worth it in the end, seeing his completely focused expression, along with the cute way he scrunched up his nose as he 'beat the crap out of these aliens.' His words, not mine.

Before we knew it, it was 6:30 and my Mom was calling us down to dinner. Actually, now that I think of it, time always passes faster when Kurt's over, for some reason.

"Coming!" I called down. I glanced over at Kurt, whose eyes were glued to the screen, his mouth hanging open slightly… beating the crap out of aliens.

"Ha!" he cried as he vaporized another one, and then turned the TV off.

"That was actually more fun than I expected. I would have _never_ have tried this before," he told me as we walked down the stairs to a table laden with some sort of fish and some green…ish vegetables. I'd picked up a lot of skills from my Mom, but cooking wasn't one of them. I just _ate_ the food.

Mom still had her apron and oven mitts on, and was standing next to the table, beaming. That was when I realized that I was still wearing the peacoat that Kurt has given me.

"Oh, Finny, you look so handsome! Where in the world did you get that?"

"I picked it up for him today at the mall. It looks darling on him, doesn't it?" Kurt spoke to my Mom with his hands clasped in front of him. Kurt and my Mom… well, ever since they met, they kind of hit it off. They have a natural kind of bond… along with a natural way of talking that sometimes made me blush. Like now. Kurt Hummel just called me darling.

Last week I wouldn't have known what darling meant, but Kurt told me. It means 'something that is cute, charming, or loveable.' See what I mean?

"Well, take a seat, boys, and eat up. I remember last week, Kurt, we were talking about how fish does wonders for the complexion, so I made some lemon-pepper salmon."

Seriously. My Mom does NOT usually talk like that. Just so you know.

Kurt and me took the seats on either end of the table, and Mom unfastened her apron and laid it across one of the counters, and then sat down at the head of the table. She usually didn't do that. She didn't like sitting at the head of the table; she said that it should be reserved for the man of the house, so usually we leave it empty, as a tribute to my Dad or something, but on special occasions like Christmas or whatever she let me sit there. But tonight she took her seat and looked proud.

I dug right into my food without a word (I'm a teenager, I can't help it!) but Kurt and my Mom gabbed on about some new movie, Nine, or something. I wasn't really listening, but all of a sudden, something caught my attention. Since when did my Mom have time to go to movies? I mean, she had a better job now, and she didn't work nights anymore, but she was always home with me. I mean, she was home, but I was always in my room.

"Wait…" I started.

"Finn, don't talk with your mouth full," she frowned. I swallowed.

"Sorry. When did you go to the movies? You never told me about it."

My Mom cleared her throat, and both she and Kurt looked uncomfortable. I didn't want to drag Kurt into any issues between me and my Mom, but the explanation couldn't have been that bad.

"I… I've been see… uh… seeing someone," she stammered.

"Seeing someone? What does that…?"

"It means dating," Kurt said quietly.

"His name is Greg," my Mom carried on, "and he's really nice. I want you to meet him some time."

I started coughing… choking. On nothing. Kurt shot up out of his chair and was instantly behind me, smacking me on the back.

I knew my Mom dated occasionally, random guys off the internet, but the way she said it… it sounded serious.

"Finn? Are you okay?" she pushed my glass of water towards me, and I took a big gulp. Kurt's hands were now resting on my shoulders.

"Finn, I know this is big news, but Greg is really important to me, and I know you'll like him. I want you guys to be…"

I tried to listen to the rest, I really did, but the light, soft feeling of Kurt's hands placed lightly on my shoulders, his nimble fingers moving so slightly, was really distracting.

"Uh… Mom?" I cut her off sharply. "Could we maybe… talk about this later?"

Kurt's hands slid off of my shoulders. Of course, I'd been mistaking his movements for something else, when all along he'd just wanted to take his hands _off _of me. This night was heading downhill very quickly. Mom smiled sweetly at Kurt.

"I'm sorry, honey. I shouldn't have brought it up."

"It's alright," Kurt assured her with a returning smile as he took his seat again.

There was an awkward silence for a few minutes, filled only with the clinking of forks against my Mom's china plates. Kurt kept shooting me looks that said: "If you need to talk about this, I'll be there."

That's why I didn't want to make a move on this. Because if I lost him, I'd lose the best friend I'd ever had.

"So, how is Glee Club going?" my Mom asked.

"Great," I said, glad for some common ground. "Actually, Kurt just got a solo for Regionals!"

"Kurt! That's wonderful! Why didn't you mention it?"

Kurt smiled bashfully. "I think what you should really be asking about is Finn's secret performance for Glee on Monday."

"Well, you could ask, but I wouldn't tell you anything, because it's a secret," I said quickly. In truth, I wasn't any good at keeping secrets, and I was afraid I'd slip up.

"Oh, come on, Finny… you can tell your Mom and your best friend!" my Mom prompted.

"Uh, no. I really can't."

"Fine, whatever. But you," she turned to Kurt, "are telling me EVERYTHING on Monday night." She glanced knowingly at me, probably recalling my music selection earlier on my computer.

Kurt smiled and nodded. All of us were pretty well finished our dinners by now. I guess more time was spent in silence than I'd realized. Mom got up and started to clear, leaving Kurt and me alone.

"Are you sure you don't want me to stay and help you practice… anything?"

"No thanks, Kurt. It's really nothing personal, I just really want to work on this thing for Monday, and I want it to be completely surprising," I really did want him to stay, but I wanted Monday to go _perfectly_.

"Okay," Kurt stood up and turned to my Mom, "Thank you so much for the lovely supper, Carol. It was delicious, and I'm sure we'll both be glowing by tomorrow morning."

Mom grinned and blushed a little. "Thank you, Kurt. You don't have to leave so soon, you know."

"It's alright. I have homework, and I don't want to take away any more family time. Plus, Finn's got to practice if this big secret is ever going to be revealed!"

"Yes, of course. Well, goodnight, Kurt. See you soon!"

"Bye."

Kurt started for the foyer, and I got up and followed him.

"Thanks for coming, Kurt. I had a really good time. You're really good at Halo."

He giggled. "Thanks. Now I have one more reason to come over here."

"And I'm sorry about the song…"

"Its fine, I understand. There are some things that just can't be told, right?"

I froze. What if he knew? What if he really _did_ know, if he'd known all along, and I'd just been too stupid to realize it? "Oh. Yeah, uh, right. And thank you for the coat. I really love it."

"You're welcome. Well, have a nice night. See you on Monday, okay?"

"Kay. Night."

And then he was gone. I heaved a big sigh and ventured back to the kitchen. Immediately my Mom started blabbering.

"Finn, I'm sorry I didn't tell you about Greg sooner. I was afraid that you'd react negatively, and that you wouldn't approve, but I know you two will get along great. I know it's a lot to drop on you at one time, but he makes me happy, and I make him happy too. I want you two to meet next Saturday night, okay? We'll all go out to dinner. You can bring someone along, if it would make you feel more comfortable."

"Mom?"

"Yes?"

"I… kinda feel like my head's gonna explode. Can I go to bed? Dinner sounds fine… I guess."

Mom gave me a watery smile, walked over to me, and gave me a kiss on the cheek.

"Sure, sweetie. Have a good sleep."

I trudged off to my room, fell on my freshly made bed, and tried to sleep. I laid there for an hour, wide awake. It might have been because I hadn't bothered to change into my pajamas, or because I'd just had a whole crap load of… crap dumped on me, or because I was too nervous… er, excited about Monday, but I couldn't sleep. I let a little more time pass, and heard my Mom lock herself in her bedroom, before I snuck down the stairs, which was hard because they were so old and creaky. I crept into the kitchen and opened the fridge. I stared at the bottles of beer on the top shelf, and they stared back at me. I must have stood there for a couple of minutes, because pretty soon I started to shiver. I shut the fridge. I needed to forget about this stupid Greg guy, about how giddy my Mom seemed, about how darn adorable Kurt looked playing my X-Box. The beer would help me do that. But what I wanted was to have a clear head tomorrow, to be able to practice my confession so that it would be perfect, absolutely perfect, for Kurt. I wouldn't do this… for Kurt.

I didn't even have the energy to make it back upstairs, so I collapsed on the couch in the living room, hoping I would get up before my Mom so she wouldn't find me there in the morning.


	12. Chapter 12

Rachel's POV

Being a star means taking chances. You'll never get the part if you don't audition, after all. I know that to some it may seem selfish, what I did for Finn, and I guess in a way it was. But Finn is a good guy, and he deserved to know the truth, and if I was the only one with enough guts to tell him, then so be it. I told the truth to the man I loved because it was the right thing to do, and yes, because I hoped that he would dump his cliché of a skinny, blonde, Cheerio girlfriend for me. But only because he deserved better than the sorry likes of her. So, I auditioned. I took a chance.

I guess it kind of worked. He _did_ Quinn, after all. But our relationship didn't change at all. We still remained in that awkward tension filled friends-who-kissed-and-then-ignored-each-other-but-actually-kind-of-like-each-other stage.

There are auditions, and then there are callbacks. If you succeed in the audition, the casting director will call you back for another chance to prove yourself. And if you got a callback, you had to do anything and everything to get that part.

I called Finn's cell phone on Sunday night, around nine o'clock, because 17 Magazine that Sunday nights shortly before ten were the time that you were least likely to be rejected by a boy. He picked up on the second ring.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Finn. It's Rachel."

"Oh." There was a long pause. "Uh, hi."

For the first time in a long time, my breath was shaky.

"Finn… I… I've never done something like this before, and I'm not exactly sure what I should say or if I should be doing this differently, or if I should even be doing this at all, but I don't know either way, so I'm just going to go for it," I rambled.

Finn chuckled a little bit, which meant he was probably in a good mood. "What is it, Rach? Do you need some singing criticism or something?"

I scoffed, momentarily offended. "Finn, if I needed help with any aspect of the performing arts, I would hire a professional!"

"What is it then?"

Another shaky breath.

"I was wondering… Finn… if you… if you wanted to maybe…" this was worse than my first case of stage fright! I had never been this unsure! "…um… maybe go on a date…with… me."

I cleared my throat. My head was pounding, and it felt like it was going to explode any second. The other end of the line was silent.

"I mean, if you wanted… to start going out with me." At this point I was starting to get some of my gusto back. "Finn, you _know_ you felt something when we kissed in the auditorium. I know you have feelings for me, and I have feelings for you, too. So why keep denying it?"

Finn was still silent, but I decided that saying more might hurt the situation instead of help it. A few very long seconds later, he spoke.

"Rachel…" He practically sighed my name, but it still sounded beautiful coming from him.

"Yes?"

"Can I maybe… think about it?"

The smile I had painted on my face faded slightly. It wasn't a no, but it wasn't a _yes_. I suppose it was the best I could expect. You never know if you get the part right away, after all (unless you have Mr. Ryerson as a director.) Actually, maybe it was a good idea for him to take some time to think. I managed a watery smile, for him, even though he couldn't see it.

"Sure, Finn."

"Goodnight, Rachel."

"Bye."

He hung up, so I curled up into a ball on my bed and listened to the dial tone for a while. Auditioning was the easy part; it was waiting for the cast list to be posted that was the hard part. I couldn't _wait _to see him the next day.


	13. Chapter 13

Kurt's POV

Monday afternoon just could not come fast enough. The weekend seemed to drag on for years, and I spent most of it practicing Nolita Fairytale and browsing the internet for cheap Broadway tickets. No luck, whatsoever, like usual. Monday was even worse. I had all academic subjects on my schedule, no drama, vocal music, nothing. To add to that, I no classes with Finn, either. Near the end of the day, I was literally counting down the _minutes_ till 3:30. I was so frazzled I went through half a can of hairspray, and a dozen trips to my mini-mirror in my locker.

I was in the choir room sixteen minutes before anyone else, taking a seat in the front row. Two minutes later, Rachel burst through the door. When she saw me, the disgustedly hopeful look on her face vanished.

"Oh," she muttered. "You."

I raised an eyebrow. "_Oh,_" I raised an eyebrow cynically. "_You_." I pulled out my phone and started fiddling with it, just so I didn't have to pay attention to her.

Of course, Rachel could not _resist_ the need to do a famous storm out, but she had no reason to storm out, so she improvised and did a Rachel Berry storm _in_. She heaved a sigh and stomped across the room, landing in the chair beside me.

I peered at her over my phone, trying to be as belittling as possible. "_Why _in the _world_ did you have to choose the chair right next to mine?" I asked coldly.

"This is my chair," she said, equally as bitter, "I sit here every single Glee practice. You'd know that if you paid attention to anything other than yourself and your misguided and impossible fantasies about Finn…"

"Rachel, this is _Glee Club_. We do not have assigned seats! Seriously…"

"…Who, by the way, I am now dating!"

"…nobody gives a damn where you… wait… what?"

"Yes, the rumors are true… Finn Hudson and I, Rachel Barbara Berry are now going steady."

I'm sure the look on my face right then was probably enough to fuel her fantasies of doing harm to the competition for a week.

"No," I shook my head, "Finn would never go out with you. And if he did, he would tell me!" At least, I hoped he wouldn't… and would.

"Well, you're obviously wrong, because the fact remains that I asked him last night, and he said yes."

"Asked him what?"

"To go out with me."

I scoffed. "Oh, no, no, no, Princess! I am Finn's _friend_, and he would NOT say yes to you if you asked him out!" Right then I was glad that I'd taken all of those acting classes, because to tell the truth, I wasn't sure what Finn would do if Rachel asked him out. I'd been trying to block the possibility from my mind ever since our little 'makeover.' I guess now I knew… that is, if little Miss Queen Bee was telling the truth or just lying to make me jealous. I opted for the second.

"You don't have to believe me, you know," Rachel crossed her arms over her chest.

"Good," I snapped, "because I don't."

Rachel snorted. I am _not_ kidding. She _actually _SNORTED.

"I think…"

"You know what?" I lowered my phone and looked her in the eyes. "I am going to ask Finn after practice. Yes, I'm going to ask him if he is actually going out with 'Rachel Barbara Berry,'" I mimicked her whiny tone, "and he is going to say _no_. Got it, Streisand?"

Rachel gave me a glare that she must have practiced in her mirror for hours, and sunk into her chair. I turned my phone back on and started a game of Tetris.

I wanted to believe that Finn wouldn't do something rash like that, and I wanted to believe that I knew him well enough to know for sure that he wouldn't. But the truth was I really didn't know.

Oh my God. _Oh my God!_ What if his secret performance today was, like, a twisted confession of love for Berry or something? All of a sudden, I didn't feel like being in that room any more. I felt like I was going to be sick.

Rachel was still fuming beside me.

"I'm not moving you know," she reported.

"Neither am I."

We sat there seething silently at each other until the rest of the club arrived. You could have used a stainless steel steak knife to cut through the hatred between us in that room right then.


	14. Chapter 14

Rachel's POV

That conniving little diva-wanna-be! He thought he was better than me! He still thought that Finn would go for him in the end, and not me! So, I think I was justified. No, Finn hadn't said yes to me. Yet. But Kurt didn't have to know that, because Finn would be telling me yes soon enough. That'd show that stupid little holier-than-thou hater. Sure, he could _have_ second choice… because I was the first.

A few minutes after 3:30, the rest of the Glee Club arrived. We went through rehearsal flawlessly for an hour. Of course, I had to correct Mr. Schuster's choreography choices a few times, but that always happened. Through the whole rehearsal, Finn kept nervously glancing my way. I understood, though. It was tough to tell someone that you liked them.

At the end of rehearsal, Mr. Schu made an announcement.

"Okay, guys, you did really great today! Kurt, Nolita is defiantly in for Regionals!"

Kurt smiled gratefully. I grated my teeth.

"But, before you leave… one more thing. One of your fellow Glee Club members has prepared a special solo performance! Finn, take it away!"

Finn cleared his throat and stood up from his seat in the corner of the room. Mr. Schuster sat down on the edge of the piano bench and gave Finn the hypothetical stage.

"Okay," he glanced at us and played with his hands distractedly, "So… there's someone in here that I haven't been completely honest with," right at that moment, I would bet my entire college fund that he was looking _right at me_. "…and I think it's time that they know how I really feel about them."

We made eye contact and I flashed him my special Finn Hudson smile that I practiced in my mirror every night.

"So… here goes nothing," he said as he cued the piano and a soft acoustic guitar. Gosh, it sounded so romantic! My heart swelled as his beautiful, powerful voice filled the room.

"_The strands in your eyes,_

_They color them wonderful,_

_They stop me and steal my breath,_

_Emeralds from mountains, thrust towards the sky,_

_Never revealing their depth."_

He paused and the melody changed. Of course. He knew I loved mash-ups.

"_The stars lean down to kiss you, _

_And I'll lie awake and miss you._

_Tell me that we belong together_

'_Cause I'll doze off safe and soundly_

_And I'll hang from your lips_

_Instead of the gallows_

_Of heartache_

_That hang from above."_

I stop a tear from exiting my eye and vow to remember this moment for the rest of my life. I don't even bother to glance beside me at Kurt: 1. Because I can't take my eyes off of Finn, and 2. I already know he'll be fuming that Finn loves me and not him. Ha.

"_I'll watch the night turn light blue,_

_But it's not the same without you_

_Yeah, I'll be your crying shoulder_

'_Cause it takes two to whisper quietly._

_Yeah, I'll be better when I'm older_

_I'll sit on the front porch all night_

_Waist deep in thought because_

_When I think of you,_

_I don't feel so alone._

_I don't feel so alone,_

_And I'll be the greatest fan of your life."_

Finn was smiling now, looking right over here, and smiling, while singing a love song. It was a greater sensation than the first time I got a reply from the fan mail I sent to Barbara Streisand when I was one.

"_The rain falls angry on the tin roof,_

_While we lie awake in my bed._

_As many times as I blink I'll think of you_

_Tonight._

_I'll think of _you_ tonight._

_So tell me that we belong together_

_And I swear I'll never forget you_

_I'll be captivated,_

_I'll be better when I'm older,_

_I'll hang from your lips_

_Instead of the gallows of heartache_

_That hang from above,_

_Oh, darling I wish you were here… tonight."_

I clasped my hands over my heart in delight. This was so dreamy… this was the sweetest thing any boy had ever done for me in my life!

"_Yeah, the greatest fan of your life._

_The greatest fan of your life._

_I don't feel so alone,_

_I'll be the greatest fan of your life."_

He let the last note fade in to the air, and there was a hearty second of silence before every single person in Glee started jumping up and cheering. Like, screaming. I couldn't blame them, because I was, too. Everyone was up on their feet, moving around Finn to congratulate him on doing such a wonderful job. Everybody was pretty loud, but I _swear_ I heard Mr. Schu saying something about doing that song at Regionals.

Really. That was the most beautiful thing I'd ever heard leave anybody's lips. Including mine, and that's saying something.

I ran up to a stunned looking Finn and wrapped him in a hug. He stiffened immediately, and I knew that he was still very nervous. But I wasn't. Not anymore.

"Thank you, Finn. I loved it. I feel the same way about you."

Finn's arm came up and awkwardly patted me on the back. I just couldn't help it… I kissed him… on the cheek, of course. Like I would actually kiss him on the lips in front of the whole Glee Club! He pulled out of the hug, blushing profusely, and looked me straight in the eyes.

"Actually, Rachel, there's something I wanted to talk to you about…"

He didn't get any farther than that, because next thing anyone knew, there was a thunderous crash from behind us, along with a strangled sob.

I turned around in time to see Kurt hurl one of the choir chairs into the wall and dart out of the room, his hands covering his face. Mercedes instantly took off after him.

Mr. Schuster looked absolutely horrified.

For a few seconds, we could all hear Kurt's weeping from down the hall, until Mercedes likely escorted him into a washroom to get him cleaned up. I internally smiled.

It serves him right, getting his hopes up like that.


	15. Chapter 15

Will's POV

I have to say that I was impressed by Finn's solo, but after he had finished, total chaos erupted. Of course, all of the kids loved it. Especially _Rachel_.

I should have seen this coming… I should have _known_ that Rachel would think Finn was singing to her!

What happened next seemed to happen in slow motion: everyone got up to applaud Finn, except for Kurt. He was still sitting in his front row seat; a stunned looked on his face. His hands were gripping the edges of his seat like he was trying to crush the plastic, and his mouth was gaping open. I followed his line of vision, and saw that he was looking at Rachel, wrapped up in Finn's arms. Finn had the same shocked look on his face that Kurt wore as Rachel gave him a chaste kiss on the cheek. Finn's expression changed from shaken to upset. He grabbed Rachel's wrists and pushed her off of him, but she still had this big goofy grin on her face.

Even over the din of the room, I could hear Finn's next words: "Actually, Rachel, there's something I wanted to talk to you about…"

And then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw Kurt come apart. He started up, grabbed his chair, and flung his chair clear across the room and into the wall, demonstrating more strength that I would have ever guessed he had. Everyone in the room turned at the noise, watching as the tears sprung from Kurt eyes, and as he bolted from the room. Mercedes, who quickly realized what was happening, took off after him. The look in Finn's eyes right then reminded me how this whole thing was started. I could tell that he wanted to go after him; he wanted to break free of Rachel's infringing hold and go after him… but something was holding him back.

All of the kids (except Finn and Rachel, who were still standing speechless, gawking at each other) crowded around the doorway, trying to make sure that Kurt was okay after his hasty exit, but by then, Mercedes had ushered him into the girl's washroom.

"Oh my G-god! What's g-going on with K-k-Kurt?" Tina stuttered.

"Do you think we should go see if he's alright?" Artie asked, sounding concerned.

"I think he just needs some space," I piped up. I can't image his humiliation if the rest of the Glee kids saw him like this.

Over in the other corner of the room, it was a different story.

"You can tell me anything, Finn," Rachel said, looking repulsively love struck.

"Rachel, I thought about what you asked me last night…"

"Uh huh?"

"…and I've decided that… I… I can't. Go out with you. Rachel."

I swear, you could literally see that girl's heart breaking in her face at that moment.

"W-why? Why not? Finn, we're perfect for each…"

"Rachel, I'm sorry. You're a great person, really, and you're very, _very, _talented but I'm… I'm in love with someone else."

Rachel stepped back from him, shaken. "What? You… you… who?"

Finn lowered his head and filled his chest with air. He looked up at Rachel, the pain evident in his eyes.

"I… I have to go. I'm sorry, Rach. I'll see you later."

Finn pushed past her and moved to where Kurt's chair had been, picking up his discarded messenger bag. He shouldered past everyone blocking the door and took off down the hall, similar to, but not quite as dramatic as Kurt's exit had been.

The rest of the club started down the hall after him, wondering what in the world was going on. I couldn't blame them; I was wondering the same thing.

"You guys can go," I dismissed them hurriedly; "see you tomorrow at lunch. Don't be late."

The kids shrugged and reluctantly made their way out, hungry for the story of what was going down. Only one stayed behind: Rachel. She was standing where Finn had left her, her arms hanging idly at her sides, her eyes glued to the doorway, a tragic look on her usually pretty face. Clear, jewel-like tears rolled down her flushing cheeks, and she took no notice of me, just of the catastrophe that was wrecking havoc on her emotions.

"This is all Kurt's fault!" she screeched to nobody in particular before storming out of the choir room, slamming the door behind her, her exaggerated sobs echoing back. "Stupid, shallow man-eater!"

I sighed and sunk into my desk chair. Now, the hearts of _three _of my students were hopelessly shattered, due to a string of unpredictable variables, and it was all my fault. I leaned my head back against the headrest and shut my eyes, think how wonderful a confession Finn's would have been in it hadn't been ruined by Rachel.

The door squeaked open again, and Emma entered quietly, a guilty look on her face.

"Will? What happened? I just saw Rachel…"

Boy, was she a sight for sore eyes.

"Well, Finn sang, and Rachel thought it was for her, and apparently so did Kurt, so afterwards Rachel goes up and starts fawning on him, and Kurt freaks out, throws a chair, and leaves. So then Finn tells Rachel that he can't be with her because he likes someone else, but doesn't tell her who. Then Finn leaves, and I think you saw the rest…" I rested my head in my hands, and Emma came over and placed a lithe hand on my back.

She made a small sound that almost sounded like a giggle. "This is all our fault, isn't it?" she asked, rubbing small circles on my back.

"Yes," I sighed, "but it would have worked out so well if it hadn't been for Rachel! And now Kurt's probably at home bawling, Finn's probably trying to figure out what went wrong, and Rachel is probably heartbroken. I feel so helpless!"

"Will, I think that maybe we should stop… meddling with these kids. I think we might just do more… um, _damage_ than help. They're good, smart kids… and I'm sure they'll figure everything out on their own."

I reluctantly nodded my head. "Yes, I guess you're right. I just hope we haven't ruined everything for them. I guess matchmaking was a pretty stupid idea, eh?"

"Yes, I suppose it might have been," Emma smiled, trying to lift my spirits. "What do you say we go home and watch Sue's Corner? Her crazy antics always seem to cheer you up."

Now it was my turn to laugh. "Now, that's definitely true."

I stood up and wrapped my arm around Emma's waist, something she surprisingly didn't mind me doing so much anymore, and walked her out of the room, locking the door behind me.

God knows how many times Santana and Puck try to sneak in here for make-out sessions when I forget to.


	16. Chapter 16

Kurt's POV

I should have seen this coming. I should have _known_ this was going to happen! Finn was so obviously in love with that thick-skulled, fashion-less schoolgirl, and I had chosen to look it over. Maybe if I hadn't… maybe if I had just accepted the fact before I'd even started my friendship with Finn, this would hurt less.

I hid out in the girl's washroom in a pretty much catatonic state, slumped on Mercedes's jacket, the wall supporting my back. I didn't make any sound, there were just tears, cascading down my face endlessly, soaking through the sleeves of my cardigan. Mercedes waited near the door, peeking out and waited for everyone to leave before she pulled me up and practically carried me out of the school and into the parking lot. I was still blubbering, so she took the keys and drove me home: a place she'd been many times before. Mercedes was the only friend I felt comfortable enough with to bring home.

Dad wasn't home yet when we got there, so Mercedes helped me up to my room, made me change into a pair of skinny jeans that I never wore (they were too big on me) and my old WMHS workout shirt from back when I was on the football team. She somehow coaxed me into my bed and buried me in my covers while she searched my DVD collection, finally finding my Broadway recording of Wicked, and putting it in my DVD player, and turning the volume down low. She always knew exactly what I needed. She settled on the bed next to me. I turned away from her. I knew I probably looked like a mess.

"You wanna talk about it?" she asked softly.

"No," I squeaked.

So she let it go, letting me wallow. I looked at myself from a distance in my full-wall mirror. I looked absolutely _horrible_. My usually pale complexion was blotchy and red, my eyes were red, puffy, and wet, my lips were swollen, and my make-up was now nonexistent. Not to mention my hair… it was sticking up at all angles in clumps, thanks to all of my hair gel. And I was swimming in my red warm-up shirt. I buried my face in my pillow and wrapped my arms around myself, my body shuddering with silent sobs, my pillow getting flooded with tears. Mercedes moved one of her hands to my head, attempting to flatten my ruined hairstyle.

"Let me know when you want to talk, okay?" she prompted gently. I sniffled and reached for the remote, pressing the + volume button numerous times until I could hear Kristen Chenoweth's familiar dialogue loudly.

We sat there for the better part of an hour. I still couldn't believe that Finn had kept his affections for Rachel a secret from me. Heck, I couldn't believe Finn actually liked Rachel! She was so loud and pushy, and just by looking at her you could tell that she was a bad kisser. But Finn had chosen her, and I had to deal with it. I just needed some time. I needed a break: from Rachel, from the drama of high school, from all of the football players whose main extracurricular activity was throwing me in the dumpster. From Finn.

Mercedes absentmindedly rubbed soothing circles on my back, humming along with the songs while I whimpered. I allowed my self to melt into the bed and forget my surroundings. Sometimes, Mercedes reminded me so much of my Mom: she was strong, she was passionate, she cared about people, and she could really sing. Just being with her made me feel like Mom was still around. But of course, eventually the illusion would break and I'd be left without a mother's love. But at least I had Mercedes. When I finally came up for air, Idina Menzel was on the stage alone, singing along to a slow, serene melody.

"_Hands touch, eyes meet_

_Sudden silence, sudden heat_

_Hearts leap in a giddy whirl._

_He could be that boy,_

_But I'm not that girl._

_Don't dream too far,_

_Don't lose sight of who you are_

_Don't remember that rush of joy_

_He could be that boy_

_But I'm not that girl._

_Every so often we long to steal_

_To the land of what might have been_

_But that doesn't soften the ache we feel_

_When reality sets back in_

_Blithe smile, lithe limb_

_She who's winsome, she wins him_

_Gold hair with a gentle curl_

_That's the girl he chose,_

_And heaven knows_

_I'm not that girl._

_Don't wish, don't start, _

_Wishing only wounds the heart. _

_I wasn't born for the rose and pearl_

_There's a girl I know,_

_He loves her so._

_I'm not that girl._

Elphaba finished the song and the music died off leaving the stage in a sea of blackness. That's about when the situation hit me full in the face. I lost it; I started _bawling._ I couldn't stop. My whole body was wracked with shaky sobs, so Mercedes wrapped me in a hug and whispered consoling words into my ear, but my crying was so loud that I could barely hear her. The ache in my chest grew larger and larger until I couldn't bare it anymore. I dug my fingernails into my palms, trying unsuccessfully to divert the pain.

"She… doesn't… deserve him!" I wailed between my cries.

"I know, Kurt, I know."

Mercedes and I stayed like this for what could have easily been minutes or hours. Eventually, the tears ran out and I was reduced to soundless, painful gasps of air as all of my fantasies about the life that Finn and I would share were erased.

He'd realize that I was the only one he'd ever wanted to be with, we'd fall in love and make it through the rest of our torturous years at William McKinley together, defying and rising above those losers that dared to call us names, and then get out of this town and move to the city. We'd make a life for ourselves, me working on Broadway, Finn doing whatever he dreamed of doing, living in a luxurious penthouse overlooking our own personal paradise. We'd take the world by storm, together, and we'd have fun. We'd be happy.

It didn't even matter what I wanted, what I hoped for, because none of it would matter if I could only be with him.

"Hey, it's okay," Mercedes cooed. "You know who Fiyero ends up with in the end!"

"Yes," I snapped sternly, "a _girl_."

The part of my heart that Finn had held since that day in the ninth grade was disappearing. As soon as I could get away from this stupid disgrace of a small town and find someone who could love me for who I was the better.


	17. Chapter 17

Burt's POV

I live by one rule and one rule only: I never let a single day go by without thinking about how lucky I am for what I've got. As soon as I got out of high school I opened up the garage, right here in Lima, Ohio. I'd lived here all of my life, but that summer Jamie had just been passing through with her family for a couple weeks in a rusty old minivan with a flat spare and dirt clogging up the engine. When their vacation time was up, Jamie's family left. She stayed behind. We married in the winter, and that August, she gave birth my son, Kurt. He was two months premature, and he was the tiniest thing I'd ever seen in my life. He had his mother's beautiful emerald eyes, and according to Jamie, he had my nose. I loved Kurt and Jamie more than I had ever loved anything in my whole entire life. I still do.

By then, the garage was bringing in enough money, so Jamie stayed home all day with Kurt, teaching him simple tunes on the piano and songs from all of her favorite musicals. I'd come home from the garage most days to find Jamie and Kurt sitting cross-legged in front of the coffee table coloring pictures of ballerinas or unicorns, one of Jamie's endless collection of musicals playing on the TV.

As soon as Kurt started talking, Jamie and I started fighting. I thought that she was making him to girly, and she said that she would let him be whatever he wanted to be. I knew that Kurt always heard us, because when we came upstairs at night after our spats, I could hear him trying to smother the sound of his crying in his pillows. Most nights, hours after we'd put him to bed, he would creep silently into our room and hop up on our bed, covering himself in the sea of blankets near his mother. He always slept beside her, never in the middle between both of us.

She died when Kurt was five. She'd known about the cancer for months. She didn't tell Kurt and I until five days before it happened. She thought it would be less painful than going through the stress of worrying, wondering not if it would happen, but when.

That was the first time I'd ever seen Kurt, my bubbly, energetic, happy-go-lucky, _loud_ kid, in complete silence. He stayed that way for days on end; so many that after the twentieth I stopped counting. He didn't make a sound. Maybe it was just because he didn't have anything to say. Or maybe it was because he had nothing to say to me.

One day he walked out of his room and asked me if he could have a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Out loud. And that was the first time I'd ever cried in front of my son. What can I say…? Jamie had always been the strong one.

Things were pretty rough between me and Kurt for the first few years. We just didn't have that much in common. I'd never seen a musical more than once in my life, he'd never watched more than five minutes of a football game. I'd never dressed up a Barbie doll; he'd never caught a baseball. So we talked about cars. That's _all_ we talked about.

I got home late from the garage on Monday, because some mom with five kids had a broken clutch that she needed fixed right then. As soon as I walked in the door, I knew something wasn't right. Everything was silent: no blaring music, Kurt wasn't singing, no piano pounding… nothing. Just… _silence. _I bounded down the stairs to his basement room, and rapped on the door.

"Kurt? Are you in there?"

No answer.

"Kurt, I _know _you're in there. Tell me what's up."

A few seconds later, the door was opened by one of Kurt's friends… Mustang, or Chevy, or something.

"Hi Mr. Hummel," she said politely. "Kurt wasn't feeling well after Glee today," she explained, "So I brought him home and he's just resting now…"

I could recognize lying when I heard it. Kurt had lied to me many times before.

'It's a unitard. All of the jocks wear them to work out nowadays. They wick sweat from the body.'

Yeah, right.

I shouldered past the girl and into the room. Kurt was lying on his bed, buried under mountains of pillows and blankets. Shaking, and silent.

"Kurt?"

"Hmm?"

"What's up?"

"Bad day," he muttered.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"No, thank you."

I clenched my jaw and sighed.

"Is it about a boy?"

Mustang-Chevy-Oldsmobile stepped in front of me.

"Uh, Mr. Hummel? I think it might be best if you just give him some time, right now, okay? He might be ready to talk tomorrow."

I sighed. Once again, I was being shut out of my son's life.

"You'll take care of him, right?" I asked her.

She nodded, and gave me the reassuring look that Jamie used to give me. "I promise, Mr. Hummel. I'm going to drive back to my place in a few minutes and grab my stuff, and then I'll be back and stay for the night to make sure he's okay."

I squinted. What if this whole gay thing was just a story he'd made up so he could be alone with girls without me being suspicious?

If Jamie were here, she'd tell me that I was being paranoid and insensitive, and she was always right. I sighed out my disappointment.

"Okay, fine. If you want any dinner, I'll order in."

What's-her-face smiled at me. "Thank you, Mr. Hummel."

I went back upstairs and sat down at the kitchen table. The girl left, and after she was gone, everything was excruciatingly quiet again. In this case, silence was defiantly not golden.

Not knowing what else to do, I went back down to Kurt's room. He didn't lift his head out of the cushions when I entered, so I sat down on the chair beside his bed and listened to his unsteady breathing. After several moments of stillness, I heard his high-pitched, feminine voice.

"Dad?"

"Yeah, bud?"

"Why can't we just move somewhere else? Let's face it; business isn't so good anymore… and…"

"…And what?"

"And things aren't going so well at school."

"What do you mean? Classes aren't good, or something?"

"No, it's not that… it's just… I can't be who I am here."

I couldn't stop a sigh from leaving my lips.

"Kurt…"

"Dad, nobody likes me! I could be a better person if I could just get out of this place!"

"Kurt, people like you. You've got friends! What about that car girl, and all those other singer girls, and the quarterback?"

"Finn is _not_ my friend anymore."

"Okay…"

"Dad… _please_? I need this…"

"Kurt, you know I can't leave the garage… it's the only work I've got, and I can't let it go. And we can't leave because this is where… this is where she was. This is where your mom was."

"Dad… Mom's gone."

"I know."

"Sometimes you've got to just start over."

"I know."

"Dad, _I_ need to start over. Now."

The space was filled with awkwardness.

"I… I'll think about it Kurt."

That was it. That was the best I could give him. My son, stuck in a small town high school because of me, when he deserved so much bigger and better, and a maybe was all he was going to get when all he needed was a yes.

"You sure you don't want to talk about it, bud?"

Nothing. No answer. I walked back upstairs in silence and wondered how long it was going to last this time.


	18. Chapter 18

Finn's POV

I had officially ruined my life. I'd ruined Rachel's, and I'd also ruined Kurt's. How could I have been so stupid! What I really wanted to do was just go lie in a hole and die, but I don't think my Mom would be very happy if I did that, plus I still had Kurt's bag. I thought about going over to his house to return it, but I had already screwed things up enough, and I didn't want to make him any madder at me than he already was. I settled for lying on my bed and ripping my sheet music into a hundred little bits.

Yeah, I did feel bad about Rachel, but sometimes she just didn't get it. I felt worse about Kurt, though the way he'd looked as he left the room. I didn't even know why, though. Maybe he was jealous of Rachel. Maybe he left his favorite sweater at home or something. All I knew was that he looked really, really sad, and I couldn't go after him because I had _tried_ to tell him how I felt, but Rachel wrecked the whole thing!

There was one thing that had changed though. One thing was different after today. Today I had realized that I wasn't guessing anymore. Now I was sure. I was sure that Kurt was the one… the _boy_ I wanted to be with. There was no one else, and he _needed_ to know. Now, I was sure, and I wasn't giving up. I wasn't going to be weak, cliché, dumb-as-a-doornail Finn Hudson anymore. I was going to be who I wanted to be, and do what I wanted… no, needed, to do. I didn't care what people thought. I was going to do this, and even better, _I had a plan_.

I found Mercedes's address online, because her Dad is my dentist, and I just figured out how to use 411. Ten minutes later, I was there, sitting in my car in their driveway, waiting for some undetermined thing, and trying to plan out exactly what I was going to say. Just as I was getting out of the car to go and knock on the door, Mercedes came out of her house carrying a duffel bag. As soon as she saw me, she smirked.

"What do you want, white boy? Need help with your math homework, or something?"

"Well, actually, yeah… but that's not what I'm here for."

"So? What is it? Better make it quick, because I've got to get back to Kurt's."

"Actually, that's what I'm here about."

Mercedes set the bag on the ground and leaned against the sports car in the driveway, crossing her arms over her chest and looking inconvenienced.

"Well… spit it out already!"

"I… I really, _really_ like Kurt. And I know I hurt him today, but that was never the plan. That song was for him, not Rachel."

Mercedes's mouth opened into a contorted O.

"I know I should have gone after him. He probably hates me by now, anyway. But I'm not going to give up on this. I've given up on way to many things…"

"So, why are you telling me this? You want me to tell him or something…?"

"NO! No! Please, please don't tell him. I've got a plan… I just need your help."


	19. Chapter 19

Tina's POV

"Maybe he just has too much on his plate," Artie suggested feebly. I held the phone up to my ear with my shoulder as I traveled around the dim bedroom, throwing clothes, pajamas, and magazines into my mom's old duffel bag.

"I g-guess. M-m-midterms are c-coming soon, anyw-way."

Artie heaved a sigh on the other end of the line. "Tina, please don't do that anymore. It really bugs me."

"W-what?"

"The stutter. You don't have to put on your act around me, Tina."

"I'm sorry, Artie. I, uh, I have to go." The phone slipped from my shoulder and landed on the hardwood floor with a clunk. I cursed under my breath before picking it up and putting it back in it's cradle.

"Tina, you're friend is here," my dad called down from the lower level.

"C-c-coming!"

I grabbed my bag, my cell phone, and shrugged on a hoodie before sprinting down the stairs.

"See you t-tomorrow."

I caught my dad in a swift hug before bursting out the front door into the fervent sunlight. Mercedes was sitting behind the wheel of one of Kurt's cars, and Brit and Santana were in the back seat.

"Hey, Tina,"

"H-h-hey, Mercedes." I opened the recently waxed door and settled into the leather seat, my luggage resting on my legs. "How is h-he?"

Apprehensive lines creased her forehead. "Not so good. He won't talk to me or his Dad about it, but I figure once you guys get there he'll open up."

"Open what up?" came a confused voice from behind us.

"It means he'll tell us what's going on, Brittany. That's a whole point of a Girl's Night," Santana answered, executing a perfect eye roll along with the statement.

"Wait… Kurt's a girl?"

"Brittany! We've been through this six times before!"

I slapped my head against my palm and snickered. This was going to be a _long_ night.

It was a simple system, really. Whenever one of us was in crisis, the rest of the Glee girls, Kurt included, of course, would spend the night with them and nurse them back to sanity. Quinn was never there, because, well, no one really bothered to include her. Rachel had been left out at first as well, but after a while, we all decided to let her in. After that we had to set some ground rules, like not getting the female lead in a song, or Mr. Schuster not incorporating your choreography suggestions into the routine did not count as a crisis. Of course, Rachel wasn't here now, for obvious reasons, such as Kurt might try to set her on fire if she attempted to walk through his door.

It was a bit weird how close we'd all gotten, with the exception of Rachel and Kurt, and Quinn and the rest of us, considering we all had next to nothing in common. Even Santana had dialed down the bitchiness, and Brittany had vowed to stop vandalizing yearbook pictures. We might have had a rough past, but either way, we were here now, and we'd be there for each other every time.

We'd never slept over at my house, or Kurt's for that matter, but we'd been to Mercedes's place when her older brother went of to university in Canada, we'd been to Brittany's house when her aunt passed away, we'd been to Santana's when Puck broke up with her… and we'd been there when Puck broke up with her again and again… and again. And we'd gone to Rachel's for too many reasons to even remember, but none of us really minded any more, because it was fun… having movie nights and impromptu karaoke sessions.

When we got there Kurt was in his bed, covered in used tissues, minutely regarding Chicago playing on his wall mounted TV.

"Okay," Mercedes flew over to the bed and whipped the covers off. "Time to get up. You have guests now."

Kurt glared at her through swollen eyes. "Well, that's a dirty card to play," he heaved himself out of bed and looked at us. "I appreciate you guys being here, but I really just want to be alone right now."

I placed my luggage on the ground near the doorway and entered the bright white bedroom, Brittany and Santana following behind me. "Don't b-be silly, K-K-Kurt. It's tradition. And b-besides, we're going to have f-fun."

"Yeah," Santana contributed. "And when else are you going to be allowed to have a sleepover on a school night?"

"But… we don't go to school at night… do we?" Brittany squinted at me.

"Brit, go get the makeup and nail polish, okay?" Mercedes asked edgily.

Five of Kurt's apricot home-facials, four warnings from his Dad to keep it down or he'd kick us all out, three random Single Ladies dance sessions, two full sushi plates, and one sing-along viewing of Mamma Mia later, we had Kurt feeling marginally better. I sat on the floor painting Mercedes's nails a bright orange, Santana painting my toenails navy blue, as Kurt styled Brittany's hair into some sort of complicated looking updo.

"You know," Kurt said chirpily, "we could open our own spa someday."

Mercedes impatiently withdrew her hand from my grasp. "Kurt, we've been doing this all night and you still haven't told us what's going on. Talking it out helps, remember?"

"Well, I think you know the jist of it, Mercedes," Kurt retorted coldly.

"Yeah, but Tina, Brit, and Santana don't, and you owe it to them to tell them what's up. We're your friends, remember? We're here for you."

"We w-won't judge you, Kurt."

"We could do a trade," Brittany suggested, "Like, we could tell you secret stuff and then you could tell us. Okay?"

Kurt's eyes glinted deviously. "Okay… but only if I get to pick the secrets. I'll tell you, and then I'll ask each of you a question and you have to answer it truthfully."

We all nodded warily.

"Santana," Kurt sat down on his bed and crossed his legs, his hands folded in his lap. "I got nothing for you. Brittany, on the other hand…"

Brittany looked up at him from the ground with a wide and naive smile on her face.

"Okay, Brittany. Remember, you have to tell the truth." Brittany nodded wildly.

"Do you like boys or girls?" You could tell from the look on his face that Kurt already knew the answer, and from the way that Brittany's cheeks had flushed a deep scarlet that she'd never actually told anyone the truth before.

"Both," she whispered, and Kurt smiled an understanding smile at her.

"See? Doesn't it feel better now that your friends know? We don't think of you any different for it," Kurt comforted her.

Brittany grimace-smiled back at him awkwardly, eager to push the issue on to the backburner. Kurt obliged.

"Mercedes, you're next."

Mercedes humored him with a look of mock horror.

"Please do the honor of telling us all which boy in Glee you are currently crushing on," Kurt grinned evilly. I could tell that he already knew the answer to this one too; he was just enjoying putting us all through this torture before he had to succumb to Mercedes's request. I was starting to dread my turn.

"Kurt! You already know, what's the point?"

"The point is, Mercedes, none of these fine ladies know, and how do you know that I know? Huh? It's not like you've ever… hmm, said it out loud or shared it with your best friend like I shared my crush with you."

Mercedes looked at her knees ashamedly. "Fine. I like… Matt." She bowed her head in defeat as the two cheerleaders started squealing. I smirked… this _was_ fun… but now it was my turn.

"Save it, girls," Kurt said to Santana and Brittany. "Thank you, Mercedes. We can talk about this later. We still have one left."

"Two," Santana reminded him.

"Tina," he looked me up and down, looking for a dark secret to expose. "I want you to tell all of us exactly what went on between you and Artie, and I want the whole truth and nothing but the truth."

My shoulders slumped. _Great._ Trust Kurt to find the one thing that I never wanted to tell anyone. On the other hand, maybe it _would_ feel good to get it off of my chest. I exhaled deeply before beginning.

"We l-liked each other. H-he asked me out a c-couple of w-w-weeks ago, so for our date we h-had wheelchair races in the sc-school hallways, because Mr. Schuster l-let us in late. At the end, I k-kissed him, and I… I told him a s-secret about myself that I'd never t-told anybody before. It hurt him. He w-wouldn't even sp-speak to me for d-days. I tried to say I was s-sorry. He said we could still be fr-friends."

Kurt and Brittany shot me sympathetic looks from their side of the room and I carried on.

"We are friends. We're b-b-best friends, but I still… still… I c-can't…" I cut myself off, and Kurt didn't press any further, much to my relief.

Silence filled the room for several seconds. There was no way I could tell them that I still found Artie's playful smile adorable, that I loved the way he pushed his glasses up on his face whenever he was dictating something important, the way he fiddled with his hands when he was nervous, or the stunning way he sang. And I was glad that Kurt didn't make me.

"Okay, your turn," Mercedes said strictly. Kurt didn't move from his spot, instead, rolling his eyes.

"Well, I think it's pretty obvious that I have a crush on Finn," Kurt started.

"Finn is really tall," Brittany said slowly.

"…Anyway, long, boring, and depressing story short, we became really good friends, and I found out that the closer I got to him, the more it hurt to know that I could never be with him. I guess… him singing to Rachel was just the last straw." Kurt was struggling to hold back more tears. "But that's all. Not such a big deal." Seeing his effort, Mercedes stood up from her place and went over to sit beside him, wrapping him in a bear hug. Soon after, she was joined by Brittany, and then me, and finally, and somewhat grudgingly, Santana.

Kurt sniffled loudly. "Thanks guys. You're the best."

Mercedes broke the group hug off. "Uh… Kurt? Could you maybe… go get us some drinks?"

"Sure," Kurt said and departed. Once he was through the door, Mercedes turned to the rest of us with a humongous grin on her face.

"I have something to tell you guys. Before I picked you guys up, I found one very distraught teenaged giant in my driveway…"

"You found a giant in your driveway?" Brittany asked excitedly.

"She's talking about Finn," Santana explained impatiently.

"You'll never guess what he told me…"


	20. Chapter 20

Emma's POV

I took a moment to stop in the East hallway of McKinley on Tuesday morning, in front of my favorite window. For the umpteenth time, I thought about how much I would have missed this view if Figgins hadn't given me my job back. Even if it was just looking over a shabby football field lined with neglected saplings and littered with garbage from the select few who had decided to attend the last football game, it gave me some sort of bizarre, inexplicable sense of comfort. And today I would certainly need it.

Yesterday night at home Will had explained the situation to me in more detail, and had asked me to co-chair Glee for a while in case there were any particularly… er, dramatic… bouts that he wasn't equipped to deal with. I _was _the guidance counselor, after all, and I was used to dealing with the emotional fluctuations of high school students.

I had a fairly uneventful day in my office, going over student records, looking at SAT scores, and counseling a closet case Rocky Horror Picture Show addict. At noon, I made my way down to the choir room, where the kids were already assembled. I smiled furtively at Will before quietly slipping behind the scene and into an empty seat to make my observations.

Kurt looked like he had been dressed by incompetent monkeys. His actual clothes were fine… everything matched, of course, like usual, but his sleeves were twisted around his arms, the bottoms of his pants were hopelessly bunched up, and his hair was parted on the wrong side, which resulted in his bangs falling into his eyes every time he moved his head. He was surrounded by Mercedes, Brittany, Tina, Artie and Santana on the far left side of the room in the way that mother lionesses might surround their young. On the far right of the music room sat Finn, Puck, Matt, and Mike, none of them daring to look at Kurt or his fierce-looking protectors. Rachel and Quinn sat awkwardly in the middle of the floor, looking at their feet because they couldn't look anywhere else.

"Okay guys," Will said tentatively, "you ready to start?"

Nobody answered.

He chuckled nervously. "Come on, guys. Don't tell me that we have to do another boys against girls competition to get you guys riled up again!"

Seeing that his attempted humor was lost on the kids, he shot me a helpless glance. I stepped from my seat in the back to the front, taking my place beside Will and beamed at the kids.

"Hi guys!" They stared back at me blankly. "I wanted to see some of your numbers! How 'bout it?"

They all glanced wearily at the kids on their respective sides of the room before shrugging and lazily getting up and into their pyramid formation for 'She's So High'. The jazz band started playing, and they started their number with a considerable lack of energy. Even Rachel looked completely listless, which was a first. Halfway through, I noticed the gaps: namely, the gaps in the pyramid that stood pointedly between Rachel and Kurt, Rachel and Finn, and, well, Rachel and pretty much everyone else.

"Stop, stop, stop!" Will cried from his seat. "This isn't working. First of all, where has all of the oomph gone?" Once again, he got no answer. "And second of all, what happened to the pyramid? Back row, you're fine… front row, why are you all avoiding Rachel like she has the black plague or something?"

Rachel folded her arms across her chest and looked down.

"You," Will walked over and took Finn by the shoulders, "are supposed to be here," he moved him right in front of Rachel, into the path of the figurative spotlight, "and you," he grabbed Kurt's wrist and pulled him over until he was right beside Rachel, "should be here."

"All of you move towards the center, okay?"

As soon as Will let go, Kurt drifted back to his previous placing.

That was when Will blew a fuse. Slamming his hands down on the piano and making half of the kids jump, he started shouting, "What has happened to you guys? You used to be such a great team! There is no way we're ever going to will Nationals if you guys keep this up! I need you to bond as a team, okay? Put aside your differences and make friends."

Kurt shot Rachel a rather snooty look at this.

"I'm serious, guys! Unless you work out your problems by Regionals, I can withdraw you from competition. So if any of you have a problem with someone else in this room, say it out now or forever hold your peace."

Nobody spoke.

"Okay, fine. To help you sort out your difficulties, I'm pairing you up for a project." He stopped for a minute to think this over. "Yes, by the end of next week you and a partner are going to have to perform a duet in front of the rest of the club that showcases your feelings for each other. And it has to be _good._ Miss Pillsbury…" he stepped back and motioned to me, "will be picking your partners."

He shot me a pointed look. Okay, maybe neither of us had meant it when we had said we wanted to stop interfering. It was fun!

"Okay," I took a moment to sort the pairing out in my mind before dictating, "Mike and Santana, Puck and Brittany, Artie and Tina… Matt and Mercedes… Finn and… Quinn… and Kurt and Rachel."

A series of groans resounded in the room.

"You are dismissed," Will said callously, "there's no use in practicing when no one is interested in being a team. See you on Thursday."

The kids headed for the door as soon as the words left his lips, and I followed behind them, eager to see what was going on between the newly formulated pairs. Most were chatting about what they wanted to sing for their duet, all except for Kurt and Rachel, and Quinn and Finn, who were looking at each other uncomfortably. Rachel had taken off down the hall as soon as rehearsal had ended, leaving Kurt looking furious all on his own. He interrupted Matt and Mercedes to ask Mercedes if she wanted to join him for lunch, but she refused.

A few minutes later, everyone had departed to the cafeteria, all except for one unusual pair: Mercedes and Finn. They ducked to the edge of some lockers and began a hushed conversation that I was just close enough to hear.

"So… what am I supposed to start with?" Finn asked her.

"Hmm… I'd say something in his locker, and then get bigger."

"Something in his locker… like a kitten?"

Mercedes couldn't hold back a boisterous laugh. "Why in the world would you put a kitten in Kurt's locker, dummy? It'd probably eat all of his schoolwork, and when he opened his locker, it'd probably jump on him and tear up his clothes. And then he'd make it his personal mission to find whoever put it in there and kill them."

"I dunno. So… what?"

"Something romantic… but not too serious. Chocolate, maybe…" Mercedes suggested.

"Okay… I can do that, I guess."

"You typed up the note already, right?"

"Yeah, I did it last night."

I chose this moment to make my entrance.

"Hi guys," I said, and was about to launch into my speech when a deeper voice came from behind me.

"Need any help with your scheming?"

Mercedes eyed us circumspectly. "How much do you guys know?" she asked, Finn blushing bright red behind her.

"We know everything," I answered for both Will and I. He stepped up beside me and nodded.

Mercedes smiled knowingly at us, disregarding Finn's say in the matter. "Actually, we do need some help for phase two…"


	21. Chapter 21

Kurt's POV

Some people are just meant to be together. Case in point: Artie and Tina. They're perfect for each other, and not even they can deny that. It's clear to the rest of us that everything will work out between them, and in ten years they'll have a caboodle of Goth guitar-playing cute little kids. It just _feels_ like it's meant to be.

Some people are not meant to be together. Case in point: Finn and I. He likes girls, and although I don't know exactly _what_ he finds so attractive about them, I know that he is too hopelessly narrow-minded to change. I don't know what I'd ever been thinking, crushing on him for all that time. It would have been different if I were a girl, because then I'd actually have a fraction of a chance, if only because I had boobs. I wouldn't be automatically out of the question. But I wasn't. I was a boy, and was ruled out from the long list of people that were in love with Finn because I was unfortunately bestowed with a Y chromosome. That's life.

It wasn't so much a lost hope for love that I was mourning. There'd be other guys, once I got out of this godforsaken place. There'd be guys who I actually stood a chance with. Guys who thought I was beautiful, and loved me for what I was. Heck, there'd be guys who could love me in the first place! I just had to survive three more years; three years and I'd be in free.

But all of this was secondary to the pain I felt from losing my friendship with Finn. I spent Tuesday night alone, when any other Tuesday night I would have spent with him, watching TV, practicing for Glee, or just talking. Just being together.

I told myself I was overreacting. He'd been dating Quinn when we became friends, and now he was dating Rachel. What was different? Nothing, really, was different, except for the fact that this was _Rachel Barbara Berry_ we're talking about here. And the fact that Finn didn't tell me. He could tell me that I was his _best _friend, but he couldn't tell me he was planning on confessing his imprudent love for Rachel through song. Part of me was convinced that I would have been okay with it if he'd just _told _me, but the other part knew that something inside of me that had been bending for a long time had just snapped. Again, this was RACHEL we were talking about! The girl who had been nice enough to flaunt it in my face that Finn would never like me back.

As the mornings of Monday and Tuesday had been, Wednesday morning looked bleak. Not even a Glee practice to bring me a sense of routine. That might have been a good thing though, because that meant I didn't have to see Finn. I didn't say I wasn't going to ever talk to him again… I just needed some time. I wandered the halls without purpose, skipping first period Science to hide out in the bathroom and look at the latest trends in Paris on my iPhone. I breezed through English, and attended Spanish class only so Mr. Schuster wouldn't come looking for me to see if something was wrong. Which there wasn't.

Things still seemed awkward between Mr. Schuster and I, so I sat beside Brittany so I could have someone to talk to through class, and so that she could cheat off of my paper when I pretended I wasn't looking. I felt closer to her, now that we had something in common.

When the lunch bell rang, I shot out of my seat and down the hall to my locker, where I knew Mercedes would be waiting. Usually Finn would have been waiting there for me too, but today he wasn't. Surprise, surprise. He was probably making out with Rachel somewhere.

"Hey," I said to her, as more of an acknowledgement that she was there than anything else. I turned the combination lock to the correct numbers with one hand, holding my Spanish books in the other.

"Hey, Kurt. How was your morning?"

"Fine," I lied, because I didn't feel like talking about it. Apparently it was obvious, because I got an immense eye roll from Mercedes accompanied by a skeptical look. Rolling my eyes back and sighing, I pulled the dented metal door of my locker open. Sitting on the shelf where I was about to put my books was an expensive looking box of chocolates and a blueberry slushie. Blueberry slushies were my favorite (they were also the only slushie whose stain it was _impossible_ to get out), but they only sold them one day a month. Of course, that day was today and I had forgotten my money. Figures.

"Uh, Mercedes? Did you put this stuff in my locker?" I asked without looking at her, instead placing my books on the ground and taking the red and gold heart shaped box into my hands.

"What stuff?"

"This… chocolate and a blueberry slushie," I said, waving the box in her face.

"No," she said, her eyebrows knit together in perplexity.

"Well, did you see anyone here before you came?"

"No… but who knows the combination to your locker?"

At this I scoffed. "This is _Lima_, Mercedes. We're so small town that the locker combinations are posted on the office wall." I wasn't kidding. They actually were. That's how Dave Karofsky managed to stuff a dead rat in my locker last year.

I quizzically turned the chocolate over in my hands, and then picked up the still fresh blueberry slushie and took a teeny, tiny sip.

Then it hit me. Literally. A folded piece of paper slipped from the top shelf of my locker and onto my head, and then to the floor. Handing the chocolates to Mercedes, I unfolded the many creases and came across a typed out note that read:

Kurt,

I was just thinking about you and though you might enjoy these chocolates. I think you should know that I think you're truly incredible, not to mention the most smart and beautiful person I know.

Love,

Your Secret Admirer

As I read, a slow blush started its crawl across my cheeks.

"Okay, you can stop lying. You put this in here because you think I need a pick me up, didn't you?" I asked Mercedes accusingly.

"I swear I didn't!" she protested. She grabbed the note from me and gave it a once-over. "Plus, if I had written this, I would have at least used proper grammar."

I grabbed it back from her. "True. Wait! I know what this is: this is some sort of stupid trick that the football team is trying to play on me, isn't it?"

I fully expected one of the football team to walk by, grab the slushie from my hands, and pour it all over my well-coordinated outfit.

"Leave chocolates in my locker, make me think I've got a secret admirer, and then make fun of me for it, right? Of course. This slushie is probably poisoned, anyway," I made a face and tossed the whole thing into the garbage bin in the corner.

"Kurt," Mercedes clicked her tongue. "You shouldn't jump to conclusions so quickly. Maybe there's someone who actually has a crush on you…"

The hope I'd worked so hard to squash sprang right back up.

"Yeah right, 'Cedes. You _know_ that's not true."

She sighed and handed me the chocolates back, which I carelessly stuffed in my locker.

"Whatever you say, Kurt. You coming to lunch, or what?"

I followed behind her to the cafeteria, my head whirling. It's not exactly every day something like this happens. Even if it was probably a stupid prank, it was something for my imagination to run away with, even if it meant I would probably get hurt in the end. At least I was prepared.

I sat at one of the tables with Mercedes, Artie, and the rest of the girls (Finn was back to sitting with the football team again), not eating anything because today was Meatloaf Day (aka greenish-brown mystery meat slop day.)

For the whole hour I stared longingly at the Big Quench machines on the back wall, lazily churning electric blue liquid, and wished, just the teeniest, tiniest bit, that I hadn't chucked that slushie.

At the end of the day I found myself back at my locker, Mercedes by my side. I was half expecting more gifts, and half expecting another dead rat. It was hard to tell which was taking precedence. Probably the dead rat. I opened the door as nonchalantly as I could. Nothing out of the ordinary at all. No more gifts, no more nothing. Not even a dead rat. I tried not to look disappointed, even though Mercedes of all people knew what a truly _hopeless_ romantic I really was.

"Need a ride?" I asked her, grabbing the whole stack of books and stuffing them in my bag.

"Sure. Only if you got time, though," she said. "I can always catch a ride with Brit or Santana."

"No, it's fine," I said, eager for something to do other than sit at home and revel in my over-sufficient lack of… well, Finn.

We left the school and drove around the town together for a while, going nowhere in particular and not needing to go anywhere in particular. Mercedes was the one who brought the chocolates up again, not me.

"Who do you think they're from? Any cute guys jump to mind?" she asked me, waggling her eyebrows.

"Mercedes, don't kid yourself. I seriously think that this is the handiwork of Karofsky. Who else would it be? You know perfectly well there aren't any other gays in the whole high school."

She was silent at this, and rightfully so. It was true.

I dropped her off and then drove home with enough time to start my homework before dinner. I was empting out my schoolbag when something caught my eye: a glossy cover, unlike the tattered ones of my textbooks. I eased it out from underneath my English homework, and let out an astonished gasp.

_The Complete Collection of Sheet Music for Piano from, Wicked_

The very book that wouldn't be in Lima stores until next October. The one that wasn't available on the internet at all because it was sold out EVERYWHERE. I'm fairly sure my eyes were bugging out of head.

Once I had regained the ability to move, I flipped the pages with my thumb, and another folded paper, identical the first, fell out.

Kurt,

I know you love Wicked, and you're amazing at piano, so I thought you might like this. Have fun…

Love,

Your Secret Admirer

Okay, this was a little extreme for Karofsky… he didn't seem like the kind of person who would go to the trouble to find _this_ just so he could play a joke on me. I fished the first note out of my pocked and paired it with the other one, placing them both in my hope chest. I didn't bother read either of them again, because their messages were etched in my memory.

I didn't get any homework done. Instead, I read the Nutritional Facts on the back of the box of chocolate, marveling at the frightening amount of calories they contained.

I ate the whole thing.


	22. Chapter 22

Rachel's POV

On Wednesday I didn't even bother going to school. Of course, I would be missing a Black Students Union meeting, and a Mock United Nations conference, but we didn't have Glee Club. I spent the day holed up in my room, Dad and Daddy bringing my soup and tall glasses of water, assuming I had the flu or some other sickness that would keep their daughter in bed buried under covers all day.

It makes sense, I guess. Every young starlet goes through a dark period; a period where the talent dried up and ambition was taken over by crushing disappointment.

Finn wasn't in love with me.

He was in love with someone else.

I'd told Kurt we were dating, and by now he probably knew that wasn't true.

Therefore, it would soon follow that I'd be publically humiliated for it in front of everyone.

I had to sing a duet with Kurt in Glee Club.

The W Network had cancelled their monthly showing of the Sound of Music.

Could things get any worse?

Apparently they could.

Around three, when Dad and Daddy had taken off grocery shopping, I heard faint metallic banging noises coming from downstairs. I figured it was just a repair man working on my neighbor's house, so I didn't bother getting up. Then I heard the front door squeak open. Rationally, I told myself, it could have been anyone… but it wasn't my Dads, because they would have yelled up hello, and the only other people who had a key were Auntie Danni in Illinois, and Grandpa Berry, and either of them would have told us they were coming.

Subconsciously, I sunk back into my pillows and tried to make as little noise as possible, just in case.

Several terrifying seconds later, I noticed my door handle start to turn slowly, like right before a killing scene in a horror movie. I squeezed my eyes shut and waited for the worst. I waited for the sound of the door banging against the door stop before wailing:

"Just do it quickly! I don't cope well with pain!"

A deep throated chuckle echoed around the room. "You can open your eyes, Berry. I didn't come here to hurt you."

I cautiously squinted one eye open. "_You_! What in the world are YOU doing here?"

"I just came to bring by your homework for today. No need to freak out. Nice room you got here."

"How in the world did you get in here Noah?"

He shrugged, that trademark smirk on his face. "I picked the lock."

I threw the covers off and marched towards him, even though I was still in my blue flannel pajamas. I stopped an inch from his face… well, his chest, seeing as he was easily three heads taller than me.

"Well, that sure makes me feel safe! Now I know that just any old psychopath can get in here anytime they want! Thanks a lot, Noah. You can leave now," I snapped, giving him a hard push towards the door.

"Whoa! Not so fast, Rach. I just wanted to say that I'm sorry about what happened with Finn."

I turned away from him and paced back to my bed, so he wouldn't see the evident hurt on my face. It wasn't any of his business, anyway.

"How do you know about that?" I mumbled.

"Like, the whole club knows. You don't scream very quietly you know, Rachel."

"Oh. Well… thank you… I suppose."

Puck ran a hand through his mohawk. "Well, if you ever need anyone to talk to, I'm a good listener."

"Really? Because you don't seem to listen when those kids you throw slushies on and throw in the dumpster tell you to stop," I turned back to him and glared.

"Rachel, I told you I was sorry about that…"

"And don't even think that this is some clever ploy to get into my pants again," I spat at him, advancing on him to push him out the door, "Because I won't fall for that this time."

"Rach, I swear it's not… I just said if you wanted to talk…"

"Noah, I think its best you leave. Shouldn't you be with Quinn or something?"

"Quinn's with Finn, practicing their ballad. And there's nothing going on between Quinn and I. She just wants to be friends."

"Well, lucky you," I said bitterly. "But don't think you're going to get me as some kind of surplus replacement because you're so obviously in love with _her_. _I_ am meant to be number ONE, not the second choice! And besides, I would never go out with you anyway."

"Berry, for the last time, I'm not here for tha…"

"Thank you, Noah, for the homework. You may go now."

"Fine." He shot me the rudest glare he could muster.

"Fine." I gave him one right back.

"Serves me right for trying to be friends with you," he threw his hands in the air and departed. I dejectedly sank back into my double bed. _Friend._ A word I hadn't heard in a _really_ long time. And if Noah'd been telling the truth (which some parted of me seriously doubted) then I'd thrown away the only chance I'd had for one in a long time.

Oh well.

The only ones bad enough to be friends with Noah Puckerman were stupid, smelly, dumb jocks who didn't know anything else. I was better than that.

So… to recap:

Finn wasn't in love with me.

He was in love with someone else.

I'd told Kurt we were dating, and by now he probably knew that wasn't true.

Therefore, it would soon follow that I'd be publically humiliated for it in front of everyone.

I had to sing a duet with Kurt in Glee Club.

The W Network had cancelled their monthly showing of the Sound of Music.

Noah Puckerman had just broken into my house and tried to talk me into confiding with him.

And I'd told him no.


	23. Chapter 23

Finn's POV

I sure didn't know anything about apologizing, but I knew I had to try because Kurt had suggested it, and anything Kurt had said must have been a good idea. Things were still pretty weird between me and Quinn, but I had to put this whole thing to rest if I wanted to focus on my plan with Kurt. I guess I got why Quinn told me that it was my baby… probably because she didn't want Puck to be the father 'cause she was afraid he'd be a deadbeat.

I invited Quinn over to my house on Wednesday when my Mom wasn't home, and I don't think she would have said yes, except Mr. Schu was standing right there and started going on and on about what a great idea it was, and he wouldn't shut up, so Quinn had to say yes.

That's why Quinn ended up in my living room on Wednesday after school, her sitting on one couch, me sitting on the other, staring at her gawkily.

I started to talk first, 'cause I figured something's gotta give.

"So, uh, I don't know many songs about saying sorry…" I started.

Quinn started crying. I don't know why… I guess that's just what girls do when they get all emotional and stuff. She came over to sit on my couch, and wrapped her arms around me in a hug.

"I'm so sorry, Finn," she sniffled. "I should have told you in the first place about the baby. I made a lot of mistakes…"

I wasn't quite sure what to do with my arms, so I awkwardly wrapped them around her shoulders loosely. She pulled back after soaking my shirt in tears.

"Finn, I didn't mean to hurt you like that. I wish I could take it all back."

"It's okay, I guess," I stumbled. "I mean, it's not really okay to do that and you might not want to um… like, do it again, you know, but I understand why you did it and I forgive you."

"Really?" she half-laughed, half-cried. "Finn, I don't even know what else to say…"

"I just wanted to say that I'm sorry too," I told Quinn, "Even if it was pretty bad what you did, I shouldn't have reacted the way I did. I could've hurt someone."

I let Quinn cry for a while, all the while wishing I could be playing Halo or doing something interesting.

"Sooooo… got any ideas of what songs we could do?" I asked, hopeful to break the spell.

"I think I've got an idea, yeah," she said delicately. "It's not a duet… but if you wanted to, we could make it one…"

"Quinn," I cut her off, "I just want you to know that I still want to help out with the baby and stuff. I could be a pretty good uncle, you know…"

This coaxed a laugh from her.

"Is that a yes?" I asked.

"Yes, of course," she said, smiling and hugging me again.

Turns out, apologizing is easier than I though. It just kinda… happens.

Quinn left before Mom got home, which was good because I didn't want her asking any questions. It probably wouldn't have been a problem anyway, because all she could talk about since that night was week was Greg, Greg, Greg, and 'you should wear that shirt to dinner on Saturday', and 'Greg used to play baseball, you know', and 'you'll love Greg!'

After Quinn left, Mom got home Mercedes arrived. Any other time Mom would have been suspicious of some random new girl coming to my house everyday, but of course she was too wrapped up in 'Greg, Greg, Greg' to notice.

We went up to my room and got on my computer.

"No, no, no!" she barked at me. "Type it properly this time! Make sure there're no grammar mistakes this time… he's getting suspicious that it's some dumb jock."

I quadruple checked the third and fourth notes that Mercedes would sneak into Kurt's locker.

"You got the stuff?" I asked her.

"Duh," she held up a clear shopping bag. "You'd kinda be screwed if I didn't."

"Okay… what about Friday?"

"I think we'll go with what Miss P suggested…" Mercedes said.

"But where are we gonna get all of those…?"

"Don't worry… Brittany's uncle owns a flower shop downtown, and he'll give us them for free."

"Ten dozen? For free? Are you sure?"

"Yes I'm sure! Besides, you can't afford to be spending money on flowers when you need all of that money for…"

"Wait, wait, wait! How am I going to get all of that stuff on his car?"

"Finn! This may have been your idea, but face it, you could never do this without me. Just let me handle it, okay?"

I rolled my eyes. "Okay, fine, but that means if it doesn't work, I'm blaming you." I joked.

"Sure thing, white boy, because trust me, this _will _work."

I didn't even care how much money I'd have to spend to get Kurt to notice me. I don't know what I did wrong, but he hadn't called me in days, and it kind of seemed like he was avoiding me. I stopped sitting at their lunch table, and waiting at his locker, because I figured that he'd just brush me off. But, Mercedes seemed pretty confident, so I was too. Mr. Schuster and Miss Pillsbury actually helped a lot, even though it was pretty weird having your teacher help you be a secret admirer.

Really, I was just glad that I had people helping me, like Mercedes, Mr. Schu, Miss P, Brittany, Santana, Tina, and Artie, because without them I don't think I would have gotten through any of this.

Greg was being pushed down my throat by my Mom, I had my duet and newfound comfortableness with Quinn to worry about, I had my plan for Kurt to keep a secret from everyone, I had football, the solo in Glee, and I wasn't getting any sleep because all of this was keeping me up all night.

Especially Kurt. Every time I closed my eyes I saw him, like he was tattooed to the back of my eyelids or something. I could see him sitting in my room playing my Xbox, or talking and laughing with the Glee girls, or pressed up against me in a hug that had maybe lasted a couple seconds too long. I could smell him… vanilla and freshly baked chocolate chip cookies. I could picture his bubblegum pink lips, how soft they looked from all that moisturizer he used and how good they probably tasted: probably like cherry flavored Sour Patch Kids. My favorite taste. I tried to get some sleep, but it was hard when all I could think about was those lips against mine.


	24. Chapter 24

Artie's POV

Sometimes I still watch her… from across the lunchroom table while she's eating or laughing hysterically at some joke that Kurt had made, her blue streaked hair flying in all directions. That was one of the perks of being in the chair: it was the perfect height for secretly looking at her… uh… well, never mind.

It's clear I don't deserve her… I'm a wheelchair bound band geek with rectangular glasses that might as well have had tape around the middle just to further stereotype me as a nerd. She's a beautiful, blissful girl who is able to pull off yellow scarves and black nail polish at the same time. She should be allowed to have anyone she wants. Now that I actually think about it, I think I'm glad she told me about her fake stutter. Everyone makes stupid mistakes when they're young. Once when I was seven, I got it into my head that I could fly, so every day after school I would climb up onto the roof and jump off, figuring that one day it would just happen. Nobody knew about it until my Dad came home one day and found me sprawled on the ground with a broken arm, three broken fingers, and a fractured skull. It started off a long spree of hospital stays that spanned from my eighth to tenth birthdays, because after I got out of the hospital with my head and arm wrapped in bandages, my Mom was driving me up to visit my Grandma in her nursing home, and, well… you know the rest. The funny thing is: if I had a chance, I would be back up on that roof in a heartbeat. I guess the chair makes it kinda hard to do that.

Anyway, I guess that you've got to do something stupid in your youth in order to grow. I didn't want Tina's admission to bother me, but nevertheless, it still did. It bothers me how blind people can be: _wanting_ to push people away just because they wanted to be left alone, when there were people who didn't have friends because they had a disability, or a weird or sometimes disturbing trait that they couldn't get rid of. It was conceited, and even though I knew that Tina wasn't that person anymore, she used to be, and there was something that wouldn't let me get over that. So we were friends. That's all. Because I didn't want to get any closer while things were obviously still weird between us.

But no matter how much I happened to be wrapped up in my own problems, there was too much going on to ignore.

First and foremost were midterms: I couldn't excel at sports anymore, but that left me all the more time for studying. Last year I held a 97 average, and it made my parents proud (an increasingly hard thing to do, since my parents had mindsets like Mennonites, and believed that playing music was a _horrible_ sin) so I planned on smacking those tests down like the hand of God.

Well, I was, before Finn and the girls asked me to help with his plan to confess his love to Kurt. The fact remained that you knew things were getting twisted when the male lead and quarterback suddenly liked the gay kid. Not that I had a problem with it… but I think everyone was getting the sense that things were about to come to a climax… and not a good kind of climax, like in Star Wars when Luke Skywalker is fitted with a bionic arm that he's able to control with his mind. The bad kind… like when there's a giant explosion and everything within two miles of impact suffered the terrifying consequences.

Quinn's baby was due in two months, we had to be ready for Regionals in one, and now before we could work on that we had to do this duet, which really wasn't a brilliant choice on Mr. Schuster's part. He has good intentions, like when he made everyone use a wheelchair all week to prove to them how hard it was, but sometimes he gets his priorities mixed up. We could pull off Regionals either way, whether there was an undeniable tension between every single one of us right now or not. Rachel was bound to be more irritating than ever, product of Finn's rejection, and Finn was distracted with Kurt, and Mercedes was too worried about Finn, and also couldn't keep her eyes off of Matt, Santana and Brittany had stopped talking for some reason, Puck was struggling to prove himself to Quinn while his interests clearly lied elsewhere, but no one really knew exactly where. Quinn looked like an overstuffed teddy bear, Kurt was trying to act like he didn't care about any of this, Mike slept through half the rehearsals, and Mr. Schu's hairstyle was really going off the deep end. And Tina… well, you know that story.

Yes, all of this had to give eventually. There was no way everyone could keep on living like this. It was just a question of what would go first.

Thursday, I got up early for Jazz Band practice, immensely grateful for the three handicap ramps that Ms. Sylvester had paid for to be installed. Now Jacob didn't have to carry me in every Thursday morning. See? People can change. After that we had study hall for midterm prep, which didn't help much for anyone who had to sit in the back at the handicap desk. I almost reconsidered going to Glee practice, because Mr. Schu would probably make us talk about our plans for our duets, and I hadn't even talked to Tina about it yet. There was no time… most of the time I'd spent on the phone this week was a part of a six way conversation about how we were planning on paying for all of this stuff that was going into Kurt's locker. Plus there were so many elephants in that room it was getting hard to breath. But I couldn't exactly resist when Tina came by to my locker to wheel me to the choir room so my arms would have a break. When we got there, Mr. Schuster didn't waste any time.

"So, before we do anything today, I want to hear what you guys are doing for your duets. Who'll start us off?"

Finn and Quinn raised their hands.

"Yeah, guys?"

"We're doing Sorry, by Buckcherry," Quinn said.

"Yeah, only we made it into a duet and changed a few words," Finn added.

Mr. Schu smiled. "Great choice, guys. That's exactly the kind of thing I'm looking for. Anyone else?"

A few other pairs offered up their selections before Kurt tentatively raised a hand. "_Rachel _and I will be singing 'What is This Feeling?' from Wicked, although we haven't come to an agreement on who will be singing what part," he accompanied this with a dirty look.

A couple 'Nice choice, Kurt' s came from the corners of the room.

"Actually," Rachel stood up from and crossed the room over to where Kurt was standing, "We _have _decided on parts. Kurt just doesn't want to admit that I got the more iconic role of Elphaba."

Kurt gave a stiff laugh. "Yeah, right. What Rachel doesn't want you to know is that I got the bigger vocal part."

"No you did not! You won't be able to handle it anyway!"

"I could do both at the same time and still be better than you!"

"You _wish_ you were as good as me!"

"Rachel, shut up! You know I have more talent than you!"

"Oh yeah? Well I know you cheated when we were picking parts!"

"_We drew straws, Rachel!_ How could I have cheated?"

"You're just jealous because everyone will remember my performance and not yours!"

Tina and I exchanged worried glances. Okay, maybe we were kidding ourselves. There was no _way_ we could clinch Regionals if Kurt and Rachel kept this up.

"YOU'RE JUST JEALOUS BECAUSE I GET A SOLO AT REGIONALS AND YOU DON'T!"

At this Rachel's face contorted in hurt. Before anyone could blink, her hand had connected swiftly with Kurt's cheek. Kurt let out a high pitched squeal before slapping Rachel back.

"Guys! GUYS! Break it up! This is not how you act as a team! If you can't get your act together, WE ARE NOT GOING TO REGIONALS! AND THAT'S FINAL!" Mr. Schuster yelled and left the room, leaving us all completely silent (except for Mike's quiet snoring). Kurt and Rachel were still holding their cheeks, glaring at each other like they wanted to rip each other's eyes out with their teeth. Tina stood up and took Mr. Schuster's place.

"G-g-guys? I know s-some of you d-don't care, and some of y-you don't have time, but R-Regionals is the whole r-reason we're here in the f-f-first place. And if w-we d-don't w-win Regionals, Glee Club will be c-cancelled!"

"Yeah, people," I joined in her tirade, "if we don't pull it together like Mr. Schuster said, there will be no more Glee Club. We'll all just go back to being regular losers and misfits. I think I speak for everyone here when I say that this is the best thing that has happened to most of us in our whole high school career. And I for one don't want to lose it because people around here can't come out and say what they need to say to each other."

Everyone regarded us for a number of seconds before most of them got up and left the room. It seemed overwhelming, but this was only the tremor before the earthquake. I waited until they were all gone, and noticed that Tina did the same. Once the room was empty, she came over and took a stool beside my wheelchair.

"Artie?"

"Yeah?"

"Can I… um… maybe talk to you about something?"


	25. Chapter 25

Mercedes's POV

"Mercedes, you can stop lying now. I _saw_ you pick out that exact shirt for my birthday gift at the mall last week, and you know it," Kurt was holding up a blue and green crosshatched plaid dress shirt that he'd been fawning over on one of our mall trips. I was leaning against the locker next to his, trying to keep a straight face. His expression was like a little kid's on Christmas morning, but his tone of voice was accusingly annoyed. The giant teddy bear that had been left in front of his locker earlier sat by his feet, but he hadn't said anything about that yet. Okay, so maybe it was a bad idea, but tomorrow's gift would make up for that.

"Kurt, I swear, I am NOT your secret admirer! But obviously he has good taste…" I took the shirt from Kurt's hands and hung it carefully on the closet rod he'd installed in his locker. "Great," I added for good measure, "Now I'm going to have to get you a new birthday gift!"

Actually, the shirt was the one I'd bought for Kurt last week, but I'd given it to Finn because I figure love is harder to come by than a good present.

"Mercedes, don't kid yourself. I am the _only_ guy in this whole school with a morsel of fashion sense. How would he have known what kind of things I like? I think you know more than you're letting on, 'Cedes…"

"Kurt, you've got to believe me! I don't know a thing, and do you really think I could resist telling you if I did?"

Kurt turned a corner of his lips up and brought a hand up to his chin thoughtfully. "True…," he contemplated, "but I still think its Karofsky or one of those footballers. I have a feeling that at the end of this whole thing I'm going to end up in a dumpster covered in yesterday's leftovers. I should just leave a note telling him to buzz off. Right?"

"Kurt," I urged, standing up straight to give him this piece of business, "if I thought it was one of the jocks I would totally support that idea, but I don't know. So what if someone out there really likes you? What if he just wants to be with you and he's standing right around the corner listening to you criticize all of his gifts and give credit to some hockey player with an IQ of 0.5?"

Kurt's eyes widened, and he took off down the hall, peeked around the corner and ran back.

"Nope. No one there."

"Kurt, it was a figure of speech."

"Mercedes, _who_, I beg of you, would be in love with me in William McKinley High School in _Lima, Ohio?_"

I waggled my eyebrows and prepared for a perfectly constructed exit. "Maybe someone you'd never expect?" I strutted off down the hall towards the choir room, a good place to take cover for a while until Kurt was gone and Finn came to find me. I'd just work on my runs or something. The door was unlocked (Mr. Schuster had papered over the window after the whole hairography fiasco) so I turned the handle and entered, and instantly shrieked. Well, I guess we all shoulda seen that one coming.

Tina was sitting on Artie's lap, her arms draped around his shoulder, and the two were attached by the mouth. It looked like there was some _serious_ tongue action going on there… that is, until my outlandish shriek reached their ears and they broke apart, blushing furiously.

"We, uh… w-we…" Artie stuttered, making Tina giggle and stand back up.

"I'll just… be going…" I said, walking backwards, smiling at them like a fool until I shut the door behind me. I was glad for them… they deserved each other. Just one more happy ending taken care of. I swear, sometimes I feel like the matchmaker around this place! But as far as I'm concerned, I've only got one couple left: Finn and Kurt. And in this case my work is pretty much cut out for me. All I needed to do was pitch in a few bucks, complain of headaches to my teachers so I could sneak out of class and leave the stuff in Kurt's locker, and keep the whole thing a big secret. That, and make sure that Finn's letters were properly proofread. But like I said: easy-peasy. But since Tina and Artie were still… uh… occupying the choir room, I had nowhere to go to give a progress report to Finn. Thinking fast, I ducked into the abandoned girls washroom across from the choir room and waited until I heard Finn's footsteps passing by. Before he could interrupt Artie and Tina again, I swung the door open and dragged him in by the back of his lapel.

"What the…?"

"Calm down, it's just me," I whispered. "The choir room is being… um, used, so I had nowhere else to go."

"Ew, Mercedes! The girl's washroom? Couldn't we go somewhere else?" Finn pleaded, a visible panic washing over his whole body.

"Nobody's in here, don't worry. Do you want your update or not?"

Finn glanced sheepishly at his feat. "Yeah, I guess."

"Okay, good. Kurt loves the shirt," Finn grinned at this, "but he still thinks it's one of the stupid football players…"

"Hey! I'm a football player!"

"Yeah, I know. Anyway, I still think we should carry on with our plan. Finish out today, and have the grand finale tomorrow. You got the notes?"

Finn dug several things out of his pocket (I didn't even want to _know_ what half of that stuff was) before finding the folded white paper and handing it to me. I opened it and scanned it over.

"Finn, nighttime is not spelt with a K in front of it."

"It isn't?"

Luckily, I had prepared for this. I fished a bottle of whiteout out of my purse and deleted the K in 'knighttime.'

"There. Perfect. Now, you, Santana, and Brittany are going to the flower shop at lunch tomorrow, and we're all skipping fifth to set it all up, okay?"

"And the other thing…?"

"Got 'em."

Finn sighed with relief. "All of them?" I could tell the QB was still a little wary of the last phase of our plan. But seriously, with Mercedes Jones at the wheel, _nothing_ would go wrong. Provided Kurt actually figured it out in time, which the chances of were starting to look bleak.

"Well, I gotta go. Thanks a lot, Mercedes." Finn gave me his charmer smile (I still don't know what Kurt saw in him, anyway,) and got out of the bathroom as fast as his two mile tall legs could carry him. Which was pretty fast, considering it was a girl's washroom he was running out of.

As soon as he was gone I was reminded of one happy ending that hadn't been granted yet: mine. Things had been so busy since Glee started, and now with Kurt and midterms and Regionals to worry about, I barely had time for myself. I still had never had a boyfriend. I was still first kiss-less. Santana and Brittany could have any boy (or girl) they set their sights on, Quinn had Puck wrapped around her little finger, Other Asian had a girlfriend on the Cheerios, Artie had Tina, Kurt and Finn were in love (even though _they_ might not know it yet,) and even Mr. Schu and the doe-eyed ginger guidance counselor were probably dating by now. The only other girl who was in the same boat as me was Rachel, and come on… it's Rachel. Duh. Of course I had a crush… but it was pretty much impossible. Matt usually had Santana wrapped around him when she was on the off cycle of her on-again-off-again with Puck. Of course, there had been that one conversation the other day… and we were paired for the duet assignment.

"_Hey, Mercedes."_

"_Oh… uh, hi Matt."_

"_So? Got any ideas for our duet?"_

"_Um… uh… not, erm, really."_

"_You okay?"_

"_Yeah… yeah, I'm fine."_

"_Well, I kind of had an idea…"_

"_Yeah?"_

_Matt held out one of his iPod headphones and let me listen._

"See her, heavy make up and cut t-shirt,

Every girl 'live wants to be her,

But they look the same already, why adjust?

Reading the magazine secrets,

Forgettin' the topical regrets,

'Cause if she comes home all alone the night's a bust

It's a must, swiveling her hips and the look she gives

It's all her trust, if only in the mornin' she knew where she lived.

'Cause if she wanna rock, she rocks,

If she wanna roll, she rolls

Se can roll with the punches

Long as she feels like she's in control

If she wanna stay, she stays

If she wanna go, she goes

She doesn't care how she gets there

Long as she gets somewhere she knows.

And in a wink they're on the brink

From drink to drink

And at the bar with cash to blow,

Shot to shot, it's gettin' hot,

Advance the plot, see how far it's gonna go

It all depends, so ditch the friends

And grab a cab,

Another chance at cheap romance

Doesn't count cause the room is spinnin'

Nothing to lose and tonight both are winnin'

And they fall in love, as they fall in love…"

_He paused it there, and I removed the headphone and handed it back bashfully. _

"_It sounds good to me," I mumbled, not wanting to meet his eyes. My stomach was flip-flopping, I'm sure if I could blush like Kurt did when he was nervous, I would be._

"_So, whaddya say we practice on Thursday, after Glee?" he suggested._

_I tried to dial down the smile that had exploded onto my face, but failed hopelessly._

"_That sounds good. My place? My parents don't get home until late, so we wouldn't bug them with all the music," I said. _And we'd have some privacy,_ I thought wickedly._

"_Awesome. Five o'clock?"_

_I nodded, and then Kurt came up to ask if I wanted a ride home, and Matt went over to talk to Mike. _

I regarded myself in the mirror critically. I had straightened my hair this morning, but it had chosen to spring back up, making slight waves that only fell to my shoulders. Other than that, I think I looked fine. I hadn't told Kurt about my date… oops, I mean practice… with Matt because he had a lot going on already, but I think I'd dressed myself rather reasonably, because Kurt hadn't called me a technicolor zebra yet today. I hurriedly reapplied my fading lipstick and left the school, not wanting Matt to reach my house before I did.

When I got there, I got out some drinks tidied the living room, glad that my older brother Dante wasn't coming to visit until Christmas and my younger (aka annoying) brother Leon was sleeping over at his friend's house.

I nearly tripped over my own feet to get to the door when Matt's knock came. I looked at myself in the mirror in the foyer, doing a quick once over before opening the door. Matt was poised there, smiling, holding our sheet music.

So maybe things wouldn't work out, I reminded myself.

But maybe they would.


	26. Chapter 26

Finn's POV

I stared at my open closet helplessly… I didn't know what half of that stuff was! Kurt had bought it all for me, and he usually picked my outfits when he came over. Not that I minded... he'd preached to me for hours on looking more manly and mature, and I don't know anything about that, so I just let him do it for me. Mom had told me to pick out an outfit for Saturday ('Or have Kurt do it!' she had said, cheerfully oblivious) even though it was only Thursday. Not wanting to go too far into the foreign land that was my closet, I dug through the wrinkled clothes in the bottom drawer of my dresser and pulled out a pair of black dress pants that probably wouldn't even reach my ankles any more, a crumpled white (?) dress shirt, and the jacket that I'd worn to the FaBray's house for dinner. I laid it all out on my bed so my Mom could see, and paired the ensemble (geez, Kurt really _is_ rubbing off on me) with the peacoat Kurt had bought me, which was a mere shade darker blue than the jacket. There… it was perfect… erm, I hoped. It was getting late, so I called my Mom up for an approval.

"Oh, honey, it looks wonderful," she appraised. "Make sure you have all of your homework done on Saturday, okay? Are you bringing a friend? I'm sure Greg would love to meet one of your friends… just don't bring that Puckerman boy, okay?"

"I won't, Mom."

"Good. And Finny? Don't order off of the kid's menu this time. And make sure you brush your teeth, and comb your hair, and don't forget to polish off your dress shoes, okay?"

"Yes, Mom. Don't worry."

"Are you sure you've got all that?"

"Yes, Mom. I got it."

"Here," she pulled the white shirt out from under the jacket. "Let me wash this."

She left and I fell back on the bed. I never seen Mom get this nitpicky about anything… she was rarely nervous either…

What if it was serious? I thought Mom knew enough not to try and replace Dad. I'd only heard stories about him, but he seemed like he was the kind of guy you only find one of in a life time. The kind of guy I that I was trying to be. And I didn't want to meet this stupid Greg guy. I'm pretty sure Dad wouldn't be too hot on the idea, either. I pulled out the shoebox holding my black dress shoes, which were already two sizes too small, and would probably be three by Saturday, and the shoe polish.

Fifteen minutes later I had black shoe polish all over my hands and my face (I didn't even know how it got there!) and absolutely none on the shoes. My cell started ringing, so I grabbed a towel out of the shoebox and flipped it open with that.

"Hello?"

"Finn? It's Mercedes."

"Oh, hi. What's up?"

"Kurt thinks he knows who it is."

"Me?" I don't know what happens, but sometimes I am so stupid that I surprise myself. Dumb teenaged brain!

"No… he thinks its Puck. I was just talking to him, and he says it's too carefully planned to be one of the regular football players, but too unintelligent to be anyone else."

"Oh," I devised. "Probably the planning part was you, and the unintelligent part was me, right?"

Mercedes was silent for a moment, before saying, "Well, _duh_. Anyway, we've gotta fix this by tomorrow. If he decides to confront Puck about it, we're doomed."

"What are we going to do, then?"

"We'll just have to somehow make sure he knows it isn't Puck, and then he can just keep on guessing. Either way, he has to find out by March, right?"

"But I don't want to wait that long!" I protested.

"Then think of something else! Don't expect me to do this whole thing for you!" she said touchily and hung up.

Well, I could just tell him, I guess, but that would ruin the whole point of 'secret.' I could have someone else tell him, and let him come to me about it. Or I could just wait and see how things turned out. It's bad to rush this kind of thing, isn't it? Plus, if worst came to worst, I'd just tell him the truth. Probably should have done that in the first place.


	27. Chapter 27

Will's POV

I had prep last period on Friday, so I was in the choir room, trying to come up with a setlist for Regionals. Instead of the three selections that had been required for Sectionals, we needed six. I had scribbled down 'Nolita Fairytale' and 'She's So High,' because Finn was getting really good at hitting that high B. We didn't really have anything else terribly good, so we'd have to work extra hard in the month we had left to be ready for Regionals if we ever wanted to beat Vocal Adrenaline. Underneath the previous two, I wrote 'My Life Would Suck Without You,' the number the kids had done for me after Sectionals. We could polish that off again, but we still needed three more. As I was flipping through my library of sheet music for something acceptable, my phone began to vibrate in my pocket: a number I didn't recognize. I picked up anyway… the kids weren't due here for another five minutes.

"Will Schuster speaking."

"Hello Mr. Schuster," a man's smooth voice drawled from the other end of the line, "This is Clay Roberts, chairman of the Ohio Show Choir Governing Board."

Uh oh… this couldn't be good.

"What can we do for you, Mr. Roberts? Have we done something wrong?"

"No, no, not at all," Roberts said humorlessly, "I'm calling to inform you that the Regional Show Choir Division Competition has been moved up to December 1st because of an unfortunate double booking. The Hilton Hotel is changing your reservation to the evenings of November 30th and December 1st."

"December 1st!" I gawked. "But that's only one and a half weeks away! We'll never be ready by then! That's so unfair!"

"I understand your concern, Mr. Schuster, but all of the other teams have the same amount of time as you do. I'm sure you'll do fine. But if you'd rather drop out of the competition…"

I sighed. Would the kids be ready by then? I knew they could pull it off musically… it wasn't that that I was worried about.

"No. Don't pull us out. We'll be fine." I snapped the phone shut as the first few kids filed into the room.

"What's up, Mr. Schu?" Mercedes asked as the remaining kids entered and took their seats. Emma followed in behind them.

"I have some bad news for you guys," as soon as the words came out of my mouth, each one of them looked horrified. They must have thought that I'd been disqualified again, or something like that. "We're still going to Regionals, but the date has been changed. It's now on Thursday, December 1st."

A chorus of gasps rang out from the kids, and Emma's hand was clasped over her mouth, her eyes wider than usual.

"Yes," I nodded, "that means we only have about a week and a half to prepare for all of this. Before we get down to business, I need to tell your parents tonight that the date has been changed, but we still have a two night reservation at a hotel in Toledo."

"But Mr. Schu! We'll never be ready by then!" Puck glared.

"I think we will," I countered. "I believe in you guys. But that doesn't mean we're not going to practice every moment of every day. I'm calling an extra practice Saturday at 12:00."

Everyone groaned.

"Now, I know that some of you haven't had a chance to practice your duets that much, but I'd like you to perform them and get them over with today so we free up our schedule for the next week and a half. Oh, and we'll be having practices Monday through Friday at lunch _and_ after school."

More groans.

"So, who wants to go first?"

It didn't take us long to get through all of the ballads. Finn and Quinn started things off with a heartwarming rendition of Sorry, Mike, Santana, Puck, and Brittany had made a foursome to sing some Barenaked Ladies song, Artie and Tina went next with a love song from Wicked that nearly had everyone in tears by the end of it, and Matt and Mercedes sang what they self-proclaimed as a 'chocolate-covered' version of Rock and Roll, staring at each other like lovesick puppies through out the whole thing. Everyone was really great, but the duet that everyone had been waiting for had drawn the last slot.

Everyone applauded as Kurt and Rachel took the floor, switching Matt and Mercedes's CD for one of their own. Everyone was silent as they began to sing. Kurt started off:

"_Dearest darlingest Momsie and Popsicle,"_

Rachel followed suit in a less than impressed tone,

"_My dear father,"_

They turned so they were back to back and sang together,

"_There's been some confusion over rooming here at Shiz,"_

"_But of course I'll care for Nessa."_

"_But of course I'll rise above it,"_

"_For I know that's how you'd want me to respond, yes,"_

The pair took step away from each other,

"_There's been some confusion for you see my roommate is,"_

"_Unusually and exceedingly peculiar and all together quite impossible to describe," _Kurt drew out every word in time to the music, looking over his shoulder at Rachel, who as glaring back at him.

"_Blonde."_

Kurt threw his head back in mock (?) offense, and crossed the room, switching sides before starting the next verse.

"_What is this feeling, so sudden and new?"_

"_I felt the moment I laid eyes on _you!"

"_My pulse is rushing,"_

"_My head is reeling,"_

"_My face is flushing!"_

"_What is this feeling?_

_Fervid as a flame,_

_Does it have a name?_

_Yes!"_

Kurt and Rachel advanced towards each other menacingly, stopping a hairs width apart and launching into the chorus.

"_Loathing! Unadulterated loathing!"_

"_For your face," _Kurt ran a hand down Rachel's cheek, and she swatted it away,

"_Your voice," _Rachel stuck both of her fingers in her ears.

"_Your clothing!" _Kurt pointedly snapped the neckline of Rachel's sweater.

"_Let's just say, I loath it all! _

_Every little trait, however small_

_Makes my very flesh begin to crawl_

_With simple utter loathing_

_There's a strange exhilaration_

_In such total detestation!_

_It's so pure, so strong!"_

Rachel very reluctantly let Kurt's voice slide over top of hers and take the lead.

"_Though I do admit it came on fast,_

_Still I do believe that it can last_

_And I will be loathing, loathing _

_You my whole life long!"_

Next, the kids in Glee who knew the chorus part (aka all the girls, and surprisingly Puck (?)) joined in singing, laughing and smiling as they did.

"_Dear Galinda, you are just too good,_

_How do you stand it? I don't think I could._

_She's a terror, she's a tartar,_

_We don't mean to show a bias,_

_But Galinda, you're a martyr…"_

Kurt played the part, smiling sweetly and fake blushing.

"_Well,_" he sang, walking in circles around Rachel, who had steam coming out of her ears, "_These things are sent to try us."_

The Glee kids were up out of their chairs dancing now.

"_Poor Galinda, forced to reside_

_With someone so disgusticified,_

_We just want to tell you_

_We're all on your side!_

_We share your loathing,_

_Unadulterated loathing,"_

The students continued to sing as Kurt and Rachel's voices overlapped them in another chorus, each fighting to be heard over the other and the rest of the club. They circled around each other like predator and prey, and what might have started out as a joke now looked all too real. If looks could kill, they'd both have been mauled a long time ago. Well, I do have to say it was the most honest performance I'd seen yet.

"…_And I will be loathing, for forever,_

_Loathing, truly, deeply_

_Loathing you… my whole life long!"_

They finished abruptly and most of the Glee club started clapping. Without even looking at each other, Kurt and Rachel took their seats and high fived their friends. Well, Kurt did. Rachel didn't. I glanced at Emma across the room, who looked like she didn't know whether to laugh hysterically or give the pair detention.

Well, the assignment _was_ to express your true feelings. They did a good job of that.

"Oookay… thank you everyone. You all did really great. So… see you guys tomorrow!"

A couple of people stood up to leave, but Tina rushed up to the front of the room and cried "Wait!"

She stood in front of me and spoke to the waning group. "I want all of you guys to know something. I don't actually have a stutter. I made it up so I wouldn't have to give speeches in the sixth grade, because I was nervous and shy. Having a stutter made people leave me alone, but now I realize that I don't want to push people away with it anymore. I'm really sorry I lied to you guys. I hope you can forgive me."

Mercedes, the Cheerios, Quinn, Rachel, and the rest of the guys all had completely shocked looks on their faces. Artie looked proud of her, and Kurt just sat there with smug look on his face. Tina gave him a confused look, and he replied "Artie and I talk."

Artie blushed, as did Tina, and she went over to push him out of the choir room, but before she could get anywhere, the whole room broke out in loud applause, started by Kurt and picked up by everyone else.

"Thanks for telling us, Tina," Emma said on behalf of everyone, "it was the right thing to do."

Tina grinned sheepishly and left with Artie. Kurt departed with Mercedes, Santana and Brittany took off with Puck, Mike, and Matt and Rachel left alone.

Silently I walked over and took Emma's hand, eager to go home and relax, which was something I probably wouldn't have time for until after Regionals.

Emma's eyes met mine and the pure electricity of it drew us closer together as we walked through the abandoned halls of McKinley out to the parking lot. To tell the truth, I'd been thinking a lot about our relationship lately… and I didn't quite know what to do. My divorce from Terri had finally gone through, so I was through with all of the legal trouble, and even Sue seemed to be having a mild streak. So, yes, I was ready to take things to the next level. I just couldn't bear to scare her off too quickly. I brought her hand up to my mouth and kissed her fingers chastely. All I needed was a little help from the Glee kids (after Regionals, of course.) Besides, Mercedes and Finn already owed me.


	28. Chapter 28

Kurt's POV

As we were leaving Friday's Glee practice, I noticed something out of the corner of my eye: just something small, easily missed, nearly overlooked in its apparent non-importance, yet it was very, _very _significant. I was out the door first, followed closely (or so I thought) by Mercedes. Upon noticing that she was in fact not following me out to my car, I leaned up against my locker (located conveniently across from the choir room) and waited. She head appeared in the doorway seconds later, followed by her body, her arm, and her hand, attached to which was none other than Matt Rutherford. I wouldn't have thought anything of this: they had become close lately through working on their duet. However, after they exited she pulled him into the indentation where the white brick wall dropped back into more classrooms. I caught the motion and quickly analyzed in the subconscious of my troubled mind. I pressed my back to the lockers and slid down just far enough so I could see them and they couldn't see me. Very espionage chique. Matt had one arm snaked around her waist and was leaning in close, whispering something in her ear that made her smile. He punctuated his sentence with a quick peck on the cheek and before jogging off down the hall, backpack slung over one shoulder. Mercedes stood there in a haze before she likely remembered that I was waiting for her and emerged from the corner with a look on her face that clearly stated 'What? Of course I wasn't doing anything back there. Nope. Just standing in a corner. Nothing more… ' I love her to pieces, but I can read her like an open copy of a cheesy teen fiction novel.

"Kurt!" she acted as though she was surprised to see me there. "I loved the duet, by the way. It was awesome."

"Mercedes," I said slowly, clearing my throat, "is there something you should be telling me?"

I crossed my arms over my chest pointedly and she knew she was caught.

"OkayI'msorryIdidn''twanttointurrputandI'msorry!" she spit out, all in one breath. She is a singer, after all. Just a lot of hot air. Either way, I was her best friend, and she had just got her first boyfriend, so I beamed at her and pulled her into a congratulatory hug.

"You must tell me _everything_."

But under the guise of being happy for her newly discovered love life, I was wondering why, just for once, it couldn't have been me. Hadn't I been waiting long enough? The only person who'd even been in love with me was Mercedes, and that was before she realized that I was batting for the other team (but not before she'd cost me $600 dollars of my monthly clothing budget on window repairs.) I felt like banging my head against a concrete wall. All of that, and now I had some anonymous guy flirting with me through gifts and notes, which would probably turn out to be some big prank anyway. And who could've executed something as perfectly cruel as this but the one, the only… (ladies and gentlemen, drum roll, please) Noah Puckerman.  It simply couldn't have been anyone else. Therefore, I had to put a stop to all of this before someone (ahem… me…) got seriously hurt. I just wouldn't take anymore of his crap… or his gifts. Actually, there'd been nothing left in my locker today, and I'd been wondering if he'd finally figured that I was a waste of time and money and given up. Cutting out on my own thoughts, I released Mercedes.

"Let's blow this popsicle stand," I said lightheartedly, "We can talk on the ride home."

She led the way out the back door into the parking lot, where my car was parked 20 feet away in one of the student lots. Three quarters of the way there, she stopped suddenly, causing me to slam into her back and topple sideways, catching myself with my hand before I hit the pavement.

"Geez, 'Cedes! You could at least given some warning!" I snapped, brushing gravel out of my palm.

"Kurt… uh, hope you don't mind me asking, but _what in the world_ happened to your car?"

That phrase alone sent earsplitting alarms off in my head. I passed Mercedes and rushed towards my baby. There didn't look like there was anything wrong with it (there better not have been! I'd driven my SUV today, and if I got it wrecked again, my Dad would take it away.) I advanced a little further, and then saw what Mercedes had been talking about.

"Oh my God," I muttered as I walked around to the front of the car to get a better look.

"Whoa…" Mercedes breathed behind me. "That must have taken forever!"

The whole hood of the car was covered in a huge heart assembled of stemless rose buds. It looked like a scene from every generic chick flick I'd ever seen, but nevertheless it started my heart pumping faster than it had before. Mercedes leaned over the hood and plucked a piece of paper from under the windshield wiper. It was hole punched in two places, and a long-stemmed red rose was threaded through it. Two dozen others were scattered around the wheels of my SUV. I snatched the note from Mercedes and slid the rose out, twirling it in my hands as I read the letter over. It was better written and more passionate then the others had been.

Kurt,

I know that you don't how who I am yet, but all you need to know is that I want to be with you and I don't want to be with anybody else ever. I this may seem like a prank or a joke but it's really not. I've fallen hard for you, and I don't know what else there is I can do to prove to you how much I care. Well, actually, there is one more thing.

Go check your locker for one final gift.

Love,

Your Secret Admirer

Stupid, stupid, stupid teenage hormones! I hated this more than anyone could ever imagine… some confused boy that was amusing himself by toying with my feelings like this! It just wasn't fair! Either way, I couldn't help but _want_ to go back inside and check my locker. He said it would be one _last_ gift. It couldn't hurt, could it? I gently placed the single rose on the roof of my car and started to walk back towards the school.

"Uh, Kurt? What are you going to do with all of this stuff?" Mercedes called after me, before quickly giving up her cause and jogging after me. I had to say, she had become pretty wrapped up in this whole thing, too. She gladly offered her opinion on all of my gifts and shot down all of my guesses of who it could be.

We reached my locker in record time. Much to Mercedes's dismay, I stopped with my hand resting on my lock.

"What are you waitin' for, boy? Open it! I wanna see what you got!"

I could pretty much sense Puck walking behind me… it was a built in radar now, a PuckRadar, which was installed after my first dumpster dive.

"S'up Hummel?" Puck sneered at my back.

"See?" Mercedes whispered loudly, "Told you it wasn't him."

"What wasn't me?" Puck's boarding shoes squeaked as he did a one eighty to look at Mercedes. She froze, looking at me. In a rare moment of courage, I decided to take a chance. If it was Puck, I'd know after this.

"Someone has been leaving me gifts and notes all week longs. Seems I've got myself a 'secret admirer.' We think it's you," I said forcefully, my hands on my hips.

Puck snorted. "Don't get your hopes up, Hummel. It wasn't me. See you guys later, I gotta go give props to whatever jock pulled this one off."

Maybe a too direct approach?

Puck left, leaving Mercedes smirking at me with a smug 'I told you so,' expression.

"Really? Puck? C'mon, Kurt…"

Sighing, I entered in my locker combination, and flung open the door. I suppose it was a good thing it wasn't Puck. Come to think of it, there wasn't one boy in this school that I was attracted to. That is, except for one, but we've already heard that story. There was no way it could be Finn.

There were two envelopes sitting on the top shelf, one reading 'Open This First!'

So I did.

Kurt,

I have to come out and say it: the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. I am in love with you. When you figure out who I am, I can show you just how much. But until then, I hope these will tide you over. I'll see you there!

Love,

Your Secret Admirer

All of a sudden my throat was dry, and my head was pounding. My breath came in slow and uneven bouts as I reached for the second envelope. I broke the seal with the tip of my nail and withdrew the last and final gift.

Oh my God.

_**Oh my God.**_

_**OH. MY. GOD.**_

The slips of paper fell from my hands and Mercedes's visage swam in front of my eyes.

"Kurt? Are you okay? What is it? What happened?"

I started to lose feeling in my legs, and then the sensation climbed up through the rest of my body. Black dots appeared in front of my eyes, and started to cover the whole of my sight.

"Kurt? Kurt?"

Okay. I admit it. This _definitely _was not Puck. This wasn't some boy looking for someone to 'experiment' with. And it wasn't a prank either. Nobody playing a joke would care this much… would spend this much money to get… to get…

That was about when everything went totally silent, entirely still, and completely _black._


	29. Chapter 29

Puck's POV

Finn and me, the two hottest guys is the school worked in system. We saw a girl we liked, I would handle the seduction part, sleep with her, and then toss her back to Finn so he could play the Golden Boy comfort card, and if he was lucky, he got himself a girlfriend (although he was too respectable to ever take them as far as I went with them, which usually left them wanting more, so in a month or two they'd bounce back to me, but really… by then, those girls were old news.)

We'd worked through all of the Cheerios, most of the girl's sports teams in the school, heck, even the Writer's Guild! But the simple fact remained that even though our friendship was in ruins, this system was still in place. Girls went through me, then on to Finn. Every time without fail. But since we'd been doing this since the seventh grade, it hadn't given Finn much practice on my end of the line: the flirting and seduction part. Actually, now that I think of it, Finn didn't pick one single girl that went through our …arrangement. It was always me… Finn just picked up the slack when I was done with 'em.

As I was thinking all this, I was running full speed towards my old, beaten up car, keys dangling from my hand. Hey, I haven't been to math class in three years, but that doesn't mean I'm not smart sometimes, and I'd just figured out what was going on. It was enough to make me laugh out loud, actually. And it was _sooooo _wrong.

Finn liked that gay kid, Hummel. _He_ was the pansy that was leaving all those love notes in gay kid's locker! And that just wouldn't fly with me. No. Way.

I was at Finn's house in minutes, knocking on his door so hard that the wood might have cracked if Finn hadn't pulled the door open soon enough. But he did. He knew I could pick his lock: I'd done it before.

"What are you doing here?" he didn't seem angry or upset anymore, just surprised.

I didn't waste anytime. I knew his Mom wasn't home, so I burst into the door and shoved Finn back so hard he landed on his back on the floor.

"What was that for?" he sputtered, collecting himself and standing back up. He might have been two feet taller than me, but I was stronger. I twisted his shirt collar in my fist and slammed him up against the back wall.

"Since when are you in love with the gay kid, Hudson?"

"W-what? What are you talking about? I'm not?"

"Yeah? Well then what is Kirk, or Karl, or whatever doing with all that lovey-dovey stuff in his locker, huh?"

My biceps were burning under his weight, but I didn't let him down. I could see his internal battle: tell me the truth and get pummeled for it, or keep on lying to me and get pummeled for it.

"Fine! FINE!" he flailed, and I dropped him back to the floor but didn't back down. "I did it, okay? I put that stuff in Kurt's locker. Yeah, I like him. You got a problem with that, Puckerman?" He took a step towards me, and I strategically stepped back.

"Yeah," I snarled at him, "I do got a problem with that!" to drive home my point, I gave him one to the side of the head, followed by a hard sucker punch. He doubled over, coughing, and when he tried to throw one back at me, I tackled him to the ground.

"What's wrong with you, dude?" Finn gasped from under me.

"What's wrong with me? What wrong with you, Hudson! You're not gay!" I kneed him in the stomach for good measure, just to make sure he was catching my drift.

"What do you care, Puckerman?" he screamed, wincing in pain.

"I care because MY BEST FRIEND DOESN'T FALL IN LOVE WITH _FAGS_!"

His face instantly contorted in pain at my choice of adjective. My blows might have injured him, but obviously my words hurt him more. Serves him right.

"WELL THEN I THINK IT'S PRETTY OBVIOUS WHO ISN'T YOUR BEST FRIEND ANYMORE, ISN'T IT PUCKERMAN?" he threw me off of him and somehow got me in a chokehold from behind. He pushed me out through the open door onto his porch.

"Now get out of my house," he whispered fiercely. "and never, ever come back. And if I ever hear you call Kurt that again, I will rip out your vocal cords. You got that?"

I twisted hopelessly, trying to get out of his hold and continue my beating, but he was too strong. He gave me a hard push which sent me stumbling down the stairs. I heard the lock on the door click behind me. It wasn't worth my time to pick the lock. I didn't even know my best friend anymore. Now he liked kissing dudes all of a sudden, and I didn't even get the memo. Stupid pussy-teasing faggot Hummel! I got into my car and floored the gas, shooting off down the street trying to burn of some of my anger. This wasn't fair. It just wasn't _right_! I sped around the streets of Lima, not knowing where to turn, not knowing where to go next.


	30. Chapter 30

Rachel's POV

I was home with Dad and Daddy on Friday night, relieving my day to them as they watched NCIS: LA, Dad sipping a glass of red wine, Daddy drinking a well mixed Caesar. They were listening to me, making sympathetic noises and nodding in the appropriate places, but also turning the volume up a few notches on the TV every so often to help drown me out. Eventually I gave up, skulking on the couch alone, waiting for the delivery guy to show up with our Chinese food. When the doorbell rang, I jumped up, figuring our food had at last arrived.

"I'll get it!" I skipped to the foyer and unlocked the door. When I opened it, I frowned and sighed heavily.

"What are you doing here?" I asked for the second time in a week.

"At least I had the courtesy to knock this time, Rach! Let me in!"

Noah's face was red, and his fists were clenched at his sides.

"Who is it, Rachel?" Daddy inquired from the other room.

"Um… just a friend, Daddy. We're going to go upstairs. We have some work to do for Glee," I lied, opening the door wider and allowing Noah to step into my house and kick his shoes off. One of them hit the wall with a loud 'thump.'

"Keep your door open," Dad called.

"Okay."

I don't even know why I was doing this. Besides, he looked like he was about to strangle some poor small animal with his bare hands. I took him by the wrist and dragged him up the staircase and down the hall into my room. I pushed him down on my bed and stood in front of him, my hands on my hips.

"What do you want, Noah? Why do you keep showing up here?"

"Don't call me Noah. My name's Puck."

"I asked you a question, _Noah_, and unless you want me to kick your sorry butt out of my house right now, I demand an answer."

Then, it was like something inside him just snapped.

"It's not fair, Rach! All of a sudden Quinn wants to raise her baby alone and won't have anything to do with me; Matt and Mike want to dance instead of run laps in football practice, we've only got two weeks left until Regionals, and there's no _way_ we'll be ready by then, you hate me for some reason that I don't understand, and Finn is playing secret admirer with that gay kid, Hummel! Everything is so screwed up and I don't know what happened to make it this way!"

Wow. This was a whole side of Puck I'd never seen before. Here he was, sitting hunched on my bed, open, vulnerable, spilling all of his problems to me. Me: Rachel Berry. There girl who allegedly made him want to set himself on fire. Yet here he was. But wait…

"What did you say about Finn?"

"Why does everything always have to be about Finn!"

"Noah…"

"Fine. I said that Finn is all of a sudden in love with Hummel. It's all those show tunes we sing in Glee club… they turned him queer, I swear!"

In any other situation I would have jumped right in and defended my show tunes, but right now I was busy freaking out.

"WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY? DID YOU JUST SAY THAT FINN HUDSON LIKES KURT HUMMEL?"

No. No! This couldn't be happening!

I collapsed on the bed beside him, tears flowing freely, sobs coming hard and fast. If it was anybody else… but it had to be him! Finn wasn't gay! My God, I felt like such a fool! And then I could feel Noah's strong arms wrapped around my shoulders, his nose buried deep in my hair.

"Geez, I'm sorry Rach. I never would have mentioned it if…"

"Its o-okay," I sniffled. "Finn is your friend. You're the one who should be upset. But it's just not fair!" I wiped the salty tears from my cheeks and sniffled again. I felt gross, but Noah didn't seem to care. Finn liked Kurt! I couldn't believe he would do something like that… it was like I didn't even know him anymore!

"Shhh… I know it sucks, Rachel. You'll be okay. We'll make it through this."

It was the 'we' that caught me off guard. I cleared my mind before asking again:

"Noah? Why are you here? You've never liked me… you said it yourself: you think I'm irritating. What reason could you possibly have to show up at my house unannounced two times in one week?"

I didn't get an answer, not that I was really expecting one from him. Oh my God! Finn was gay! I was in love with a gay guy! I obscured my face into Noah's shoulder, probably getting his shirt wet, but again, he didn't seem to mind.

"Don't say I never liked you," he whispered gently through my hair. "I've always liked you," he said even quieter, so softly that I could barely hear it. He placed a glancing kiss on the top of my head, moving his lips down to my ear, brushing them along my jaw line. He twisted my around so that I was leaning into him, and lifted my face up to his with a finger under my chin. I felt a strange buzzing in the back of my head, something I hadn't felt when I'd been making out with Noah the first time. He came closer and closer to me his blazing brown eyes boring into mine, until our lips touched. He went slowly at first, his slightly chapped lips exploring every inch of mine. At first I was too shocked to respond. Something about it just felt different than the other times I'd kissed Noah. It was sweeter. When I finally regained control of my thoughts and body, I began kissing him back, parting my lips slightly, hands framing his face. It was like all the hurt he'd felt was pouring into me through that kiss, and all the pain I was feeling was being taken away by him. It was too much… I pulled away from him and broke the kiss off. He took one of my hands in his one, caressing my fingers with his calloused ones.

"Rach…" he started.

"Noah, I… I think you should go." I said definitively. It was too much… too much to feel in one sitting. Finn was gay. Finn was gay! And Noah… the sound of his name made my heart throb and I didn't know why! And Kurt… _Kurt…_

"You should go," I slipped my hand out of his and made the two quick steps into my bathroom, turning the lock and sitting down on the edge of the tub to cry. Meanwhile, a plan was formulating in my head. It was perfect. I could get revenge… I could get revenge for both Noah and I. And all it would take was a phone call. I waited until I was sure Noah would be gone before slipping out of the bathroom and retrieving my phone book off of my desk. I looked up Jacob's number and dialed it in three seconds flat, my nose still running, my lips still tingling from Noah's kiss.

It rang three times before he picked up.

"Hello, you've reached McKinley's live gossip hotline! Drop your tidbits here!"

"Hello Jacob, this is Rachel."

"Rachel? Oh my God, Rachel Berry?" I could hear him hyperventilating on the other end of the line. "What can I do for you today, my muse?" he snickered creepily. Ugh.

"Jacob, have I got a story for you! And you have to make sure the whole school knows by Monday…"


	31. Chapter 31

Finn's POV

I woke up on Saturday morning feeling good. I had left my final gift for Kurt in his locker on Friday afternoon, and Mercedes had told me he had actually _fainted_ when he figured out what it was. That was good news; considering the amount of money we'd all pitched in, we'd hadn't expected much less. It couldn't have been long until he figured out who his secret admirer really was.

But then I remembered my fight with Puck yesterday, and the weekend Glee practice, and the dinner with Greg. I remembered what Mercedes had said when I told her about how Puck broke into my house and beat me up: that Puck would just end up telling the whole school about what I'd done, and the whole plan would end in disaster. I'd told her that Puck wouldn't do that: even if he _did_ want to ruin my reputation, he was ashamed of someone he'd been friends with being different, and he'd keep in under wraps as long as he possibly could. At least, I hoped I could count on that theory: Puck _could_ be pretty unpredictable.

All this was enough to put me back to sleep. Mom ended up remembering and waking me up ten minutes before 12:00, rushing me out of bed and into some clothes, and driving me to the school.

When I stumbled into the auditorium, the rest of Glee was practicing 'She's So High,' with Mr. Schuster singing my solo. I snuck into a seat in the front row and checked my watch. 12:25. As soon as they finished, Mr. Schuster sent them all down into the seats. As Rachel walked past me, she whispered harshly:

"How nice of you to show up, _Finn_."

There was so much venom in her voice that I thought she was going to sit beside me just to torture me with her lectures of why she was so disappointed in my for being almost half an hour late and so on. She didn't… she passed me and kept walking, landing in a seat beside Tina. I ended up on the end of the row, beside Mike. Mr. Schu took the stage.

"So, now that everyone's here, I think we best get on to the business of our setlist for Regionals. I want us to do 'She's So High,' because we've already gotten it choreographed and we haven't performed it for anyone yet, and 'Nolita Fairytale,' which we can finish choreographing today. I was also thinking about doing 'My Life Would Suck Without You.' You guys worked that one out all on your own, and it was great, so I think the judges will appreciate that. But that's only three… we need six. So I need some suggestions from you guys."

A couple hands were raised, tentatively. Mike and Matt wanted to do 'Bust a Move,' but Mr. Schuster said he'd think about it, but still needed someone to sing lead, which none of the guys wanted to. Rachel went next.

"Mr. Schuster, I can't believe I'm saying this, because it totally defies my moral and specific standardized codes, but I think that the rendition of Wicked's 'What Is This Feeling?' that I planned and choreographed… along with _Kurt_… was one of the best duets performed, and I suggest that… _if_ you happen to need an extra selection for Regionals, we could perform that, and the rest of the club could take the chorus part."

Mr. Schuster pursed his lips in a smile, like he was proud that Rachel had actually decided to include someone in her expeditions.

"…Or I could rewrite the lyrics to make it a solo for myself," she suggested. So much for that.

"Thanks for the proposition, Rach. We'll see," Mr. Schuster pointed to Mercedes, who had raised her hand during Rachel's speech. "Mercedes? What did you have in mind?"

"I think Finn should sing the mash-up he sang on Monday," she suggested with an underhanded smirk.

I blushed. I guess I kind of owed her, anyway, after all she'd done. "Mr. Schu, I really don't think that's such a good idea…"

"Why not? I thought it was a good mash-up… the songs you chose complimented each other very nicely. I think that would be a good idea, Finn. It'd give you _another chance_ to sing it…"

If I didn't know any better, I'd think that Mr. Schu knew something more than I'd told him when I said I'd be singing a mash-up for someone in Glee Club.

"Um… okay…" I looked down the aisle and Quinn gave me a small, reassuring smile.

"Great! Guys, these are wonderful suggestions, but we need more than this if we ever want to come up with a good setlist, okay?" Mr. Schuster clapped his hands together lustily. He looked ambitious… expecting us to pull of another miracle like we'd done at Sectionals, because that's what we did. Glee Club performed miracles.

We spent the next hour coming up with songs, and then left it to Mr. Schu and Miss Pillsbury (who was co-director now, or something, but I think that's probably just because her and Mr. Schu were like, going out now or whatever) to make the final call.

For the next two and a half hours we practiced the three numbers that were set in stone, and finished the choreography for 'Nolita Fairytale.' Then Kurt and Mercedes tried to persuade Mr. Schuster to make all the boys wear white ruffled dress shirts, red Italian slacks, and those huge hats that those guys on the boats in Venice wore for 'Nolita Fairytale', and then suggested that the girls would all wear red sundresses and weaved, black, flat-straw hats. Of course, they'd said, Kurt would have to wear something different so he'd stand out. Black Versace pants, perhaps? Paired with a red, low cut…

As soon as those words left Kurt's mouth, Mr. Schuster cut him off.

"What?" he pouted, "I was going to say 'low cut, brimmed _toque_! Besides, that would integrate the modern aspects of the piece with the older aspects… and it would be _very _Adam Lambert," he said convincingly.

Mr. Schu finally relented. "Only if you guys get it all worked out, though," he said.

Besides Mercedes, nobody was really talking to each other. Puck was off grumbling in a corner to himself, not even looking at me. There was some sort of weird tension between Santana and Brittany, but I didn't know what that was all about. Rachel talked to Tina a little bit, but other than that she stayed silent, and looked focused. Kurt was still avoiding me like I was some sort of communicable disease. As much as I knew that it would all be okay once we got through with this whole secret thing, I kind of wished we could just be friends again. I really missed him; I missed spending the weekends with him watching musicals (a new frontier for me) and singing Glee songs. Anything he wanted to do, really.

My Mom was waiting in the hallway outside when we finished at four. She was getting anxious, I guess. I was always nervous the first time my Mom met my girlfriends. Er… before, I mean. Besides, Glee had run a little late. She practically dragged me out of the school and into the car, rambling about how I should behave and what I should talk about to Greg when I met him, and all the stuff I'd heard before.

When we got home, she shoved me into my room and told me to get dressed, because we were leaving in an hour and she had to go get ready. I don't know about her, but it sure didn't take me that long to get ready, so I shut the door and turned on my Xbox, partly because I didn't have anything else to do, but mostly because the controllers still smelled like Kurt's hand cream.

I didn't realize how long I'd been playing until Mom called up to be downstairs in ten minutes. I quickly shut the system off and changed out of my jeans into my fancier clothes. I didn't notice how hard my heart was beating until I stopped and stood still, and all at once my mind started screaming 'You can't do this! You can't do this!' like some sort of haywire alarm. I don't know if it was the smell of soft lavender that was clogging up my brain, or all of that crazy practicing today, but I felt dizzy. I sat down on my bed and put my head between my knees. I just wanted to be perfect for my Mom; to make her proud, and I was always afraid that I wouldn't be able to do that.

"Finn! Let's go! We're going to be late!"

"Uh… just a sec, Mom…"

If I texted him… just texted him and asked him to come, maybe he'd say yes…

"Is something wrong, Finny? Do you need help?"

"No… just a second."

In a panic, I reached for my phone. It may have been stupid, and totally against Mercedes's rules, but I had to do it. Speed dial 2, second only to my Mom's cell phone. I punched in the *#2 on my cell phone as hastily as my shaking thumbs would let me, and typed a message:

Meet me at the Keg in 20? Please?

I was actually expecting rejection… I mean, we hadn't spoken in a week, I wasn't expecting much at all. But his reply came back in an instant.

See you there.

Just like that. No questions asked. That's when I realized what a true friend was. And that what Puck had done wasn't the definition of _any_ kind of friend at all.


	32. Chapter 32

Kurt's POV

When Mercedes had carried me into my house on Friday afternoon, still half-conscious, the first thing my Dad did was start barking to me about not eating enough. He thinks just because I'm not pigging out on junk food every ten minutes like he did when my age that I must be anorexic. I'm definitely _not_ anorexic (being super-thin like Nicole Richie is just _gross_!) but I do have to have some way to keep up this figure! Of course, this was just another thing my Dad wouldn't understand. But once I explained why I fainted, and that any gay boy worth his Madonna singles would have done the same thing, he rolled his eyes and went up to his room to watch Deadliest Catch. Mercedes took my car because she had to go home to look after her younger brother.

Saturday after Glee practice, I was still gawking at my final gift from my secret admirer. In the words of Olivia Newton-John: "_You shouldn't blow the chance, when you've got the chance…"_

I would find out who this guy was, if it was the last thing I did! It would be my first priority from now on… even if Mercedes was acting like she knew something and didn't want me to find out. I didn't need her help! It shouldn't have been hard; after all, there weren't many guys in the school who didn't take great pleasure in throwing me in the dumpsters every Monday morning. I was formulating a plan and a matching outfit for the beginning of my sleuthing missions (my beige trench coat, perhaps, and a deerstalker cap?) when my cell phone buzzed: 1 new text message. I flipped the screen up, and opened the text, which read: Meet me at the Keg in 20? Please? from a number that had dominated my call logs for most of the last few months. I hadn't forgotten: it was Finn's dinner with Greg tonight. If the past week had gone differently, I'd fully expected to be going with them, but I hadn't been expecting this. I mean, shouldn't he have been taking Rachel? That way it could have been a full blown 'meet the significant other' dinner. That would have been a sight to see. But either way, now he was texting me, asking me to come, and I found myself not even considering the question. Before I knew what I was doing, I'd replied.

See you there.

He would have done the same thing for me, right? And he was my friend, even if he was he happened to be in love with my mortal enemy. I couldn't let my affections get in the way of our friendship, and I wasn't going to throw something that special away because I couldn't deal with the fact that he would never feel the same way about my that I felt about him.

But enough about that. I glanced down at what I was wearing and grimaced. Faux-tweed breeches and a matching fedora might have been a rockin' fashion statement for Glee rehearsal, but definitely not for a dinner out with Finn, his Mom, and her boyfriend. It would take me twenty minutes to get there, but there isn't anything wrong with being fashionably late, right? I threw open the doors to my walk in closet and started looking for something a little more simple than my current attire. After all, the dinner was supposed to be about Finn, and I didn't want to draw any attention away from him. I landed on a white, blue, and green pinstripe D&G dress shirt and a pair of dark blue denim skinnies that accentuated my well-sculpted thighs pretty nicely. Fumbling through my hat collection, I decided on the hat that I'd worn when I'd helped Finn with his ballad. I contemplated a scarf, but decided against it. Better to meet this Greg character first and scare him off with my chronic over-accessorizing later, if such was needed.

I struggled out of my breeches and managed to get my dinner outfit on quicker than I thought myself capable. I simultaneously tucked my shirt into my jeans and grabbed my phone and a pack of gum off the bedside table, just in case. Pretty normal, in terms of my taste. I whisked on the hat and bounded up the stairs, knowing that there was only one method of getting past my Dad in a situation like this.

"Hey Dad, I'm going out to dinner. Kay, see you, bye."

"With who?" I heard my Dad shout, but by that time I was already in the garage and starting up one of my spare cars: a blue Mustang that was sure to make any American heterosexual male drool all over himself. From the drivers seat I could hear my Dad trudging through the house towards the garage for my interrogation, but I was too quick for him. I reversed through the open garage door so fast that I almost clipped a black Sedan on my descent to the road. I lingered long enough to watch Dad burst through the garage door, shouting my name, and then began my drive. I'd been to the Keg a lot. It was the only semi-fancy restaurant in all of Lima, and my Dad _loved_ steak.

It was close to six, and the sun was setting, leaving a lasting glow over the Lima landscape. All the frequent rush hour participants were home, having dinner with their families, so the streets were barren. I didn't speed up, I stayed right on the speed limit; one thing my father had taught me over 16 years of helping him in the garage was that 86% of all accidents occurred while at a speed that accelerated the speed limit. That, and all of a sudden I was nervous about seeing Finn for the first time in a week. It was my fault we'd stopped talking. I never should have reacted that way in Glee when he sang to Rachel. It was stupid and fueled by jealously, and I could only hope that Finn would forgive me for it. I mean, he and Rachel were obviously meant for each other, right? Yes, they'd grow old together and have a bunch of very tall, cute, _loud, annoying_ children. And so I figured I'd betted milk whatever time I had left with him to its fullest, because she was going to get the rest of it.

Fifteen minutes later, I pulled my car into a parking spot right outside the front doors of the Keg. I checked my hair one more time in the mirror, and then made my way into the restaurant. It was more than dimly lit… I could barely see the face of the waitress that escorted me to Finn's table (after I'd explained to her that I was looking for a woman with brown curly hair, probably a middle aged man, and a tall teenager. Yes, very tall. Yes, he's that tall! Should I just find them myself!)

The three of them were seated in a booth in one of the back corners. It looked like any typical meet-the-boyfriend dinner: Carol was grinning at both of them, trying to prompt some level of normal, comfortable conversation with no success, Finn's face was plastered with an awkward grimace-smile, and Greg was just smiling a lot, like he was trying to make friends with a little kid. It might have worked to, if Finn were _five_. Ugh. Thank God _I _was here.

I made my entrance strategically, making sure that Finn saw me before anyone else did. The look of extreme relief on his face was absolutely priceless, not to mention adorably cute. I noticed that he was wearing the jacket I'd given him, and it looked _very_ good on him. He mouthed 'hi' to me, not wanting to interrupt something Greg was saying to his Mom about dental care plans for factory workers or something equally boring. I stopped at the edge of the table next to where Finn was sitting. He moved over so that he was across from Greg, and I sat down across from Carol, removing my hat.

"Hi, Kurt! Finn mentioned you might have been coming, but we weren't sure," she gushed, trying to break the awkward lull in conversation. "But I'm so glad you did. This is Greg…"

Greg, a man who looked to be in his late 40s at least, with sandy brown hair and an expensive looking business suit, stood up to shake my hand. He had a smile that was probably used to charm secretaries and negotiators on a daily basis. He was obviously either a politician or an office drone. I was opting for the first. He had a firm handshake, which further supported my theory.

"Nice to meet you, Mr…?"

"Mr. Marcus," he said politely, "but you can call me Greg."

I smoothed out my shirt and sat back down next to Finn, whispering a quick hello. He had a Coke in front of him, but he was nervously twirling the glass instead of drinking it.

"Would you like a refreshment, Kurt?" Greg offered, flagged a waitress. I requested a water, and the waitress went off to the kitchen.

It was painfully obvious that Greg Marcus was a stereotypical, All-American golden boy. I would have bet that he played at least two sports in his youth, got good grades, and juggled girls like flaming chainsaws in a circus act. He would have reminded me of my Dad, if he weren't so stiff and… civil. And he had a way with words, too. Much to his girlfriend's delight, he turned the topic to the two of us.

"So, what do you teenagers do nowadays? Video games, fight clubs… the usual?" he joked.

"Finn and Kurt are on the football team," Carol provided common ground.

"Oh yeah? I played back in my senior years. Got a full scholarship to U of Ohio, but I turned it down to go to law school…"

Bingo.

"…What positions do you guys play?" he eyed me cagily, like he couldn't believe someone like me was actually on a high school football team.

"I'm the quarterback," Finn said, "And Kurt's the kicker. Well, he was…"

"Why'd you quit, son? Football is a good, All-American sport…"

Bingo, bingo, bingo.

"…you can't become a man until you've played on a football team."

"I, uh… I busted my knee," I lied. It may have been socially inept, but something told me that Mr. Marcus wouldn't be all that accepting of an 'All-American' boy quitting football to stay in a Glee club.

"Oh, that's too bad. So what else do you guys do?"

Finn fiddled with his hands now, instead of his glass, "We just, like, hang out and stuff."

It wouldn't have been a mystery to anyone within fifteen yard radius how proud Carol Hudson was of her son.

"I see…" Greg said, laughing a joke, that no one else seemed to understand. "Hang out. So, do you two have girlfriends?"

I chose this moment to break into the conversation, just for the heck of it, and the fact that it would be interesting to see the outcome of this particular question.

"Not me," I told him, "I'm single at the moment. But Finn does." I elbowed him in the ribcage playfully. "Her name's _Rachel_. She's a _singer_ and she wears short skirts," I teased. Finn looked horrified. Greg raised an eyebrow.

"A singer, huh? Well, the _do_ have the best lung capacity…" now it was Greg's turn to get elbowed, by a blushed Carol. "What? I was trying to relate to him!"

"Actually, I don't… uh, have a girlfriend."

"What?

"_What?_" That was impossible! Rachel was _all over him_, especially after that song he sang in Glee for her.

"Pardon?"

"I said I don't have a girlfriend." He looked at me while he said this, like he was trying to tell me something that he didn't want to say out loud, but I couldn't tell what. "The thing with Rachel was just a big misunderstanding."

Greg clicked his tongue sympathetically. "Well, there are other fish in the sea."

"Well, that's too bad, Finny. That Rachel girl was nice… I think I met her once at your school."

Finn nodded and looked down at his lap. "Yeah, well, I like somebody else, anyway."

Before anyone could comment on this, the waitress walked up to take our orders. I just ordered the first thing my eyes landed on, not caring what I ate as long as it provided some sort of sustenance. The waitress took our menus, and Finn's statement was forgotten by all but me. It was a shock that he wasn't going out with Rachel… that meant that not seeing Finn for a week had all been for nothing. But who else was there? Who else would he like? Brittany? Santana? _Tina?_ I had absolutely no idea who it could have been.

After the food came, the atmosphere was much more relaxed. Finn seemed glad that he wasn't under any pressure to talk to anyone anymore, and everyone and a while when he reached for his napkin, which he had placed over his knees, his hand would brush by my thigh and my heart rate would go mad. No one noticed, though. Greg was engrossed in his fillet mignon, and Carol was engrossed in Greg, and Finn was trying and failing to be engrossed in anything but the two of them. Soon, Finn started talking to me. He'd gotten a B+ on his Spanish test in the past week, and they'd won a football game but only because Matt and Mike had insisted on teaching the team to dance during practice. When we came to a pause in the conversation, I asked the fateful question.

"So, what happened with you and Rachel?"

Finn paused for a minute, halfway turned towards me and halfway to the table.

"I never liked Rachel… she just thought I did." he said open-endedly, leaving space for a million questions.

"Who was that song for then?" It had to be someone in Glee club… but there weren't many options to choose from. I was betting on one of the cheerleaders.

"Excuse me sir, are you finished?" the waitress asked Finn, reaching for his plate.

"Uh, yeah, I guess."

The waitress departed with the rest of the dishes, and Greg stood up to get Carol's jacket off of the hooks.

"Ready to go, boys?" he asked us. I stood up and let Finn out of the booth, his fingers brushing past my hip as he led the way out into the parking lot.

It was now quarter past eight, and the Lima sky was filled with tiny white stars. Finn and I lingered behind as Carol walked Greg to his car and the two shared a goodnight kiss, which neither of us had the stomach to view. Greg drove off into the night and we walked over to where Finn's Mom was still standing. Their car was parked right beside my own.

"You're welcome to come and spend the night, Kurt," she offered.

"Oh, no I really should be getting home. I don't want to intrude on anything…"

"I'd be no problem," Carol said convincingly. "Besides, it's too dark too drive all the way home on your own. You can follow us to our place, and I can call your Dad and let him know where you'll be. You don't have any other plans, do you?"

No, I didn't have any other plans. And there were things I needed to talk to Finn about that I couldn't talk about in front of Greg or his mother. It was the perfect opportunity, and my Dad couldn't say no if I was already there, it was late, and Carol called and said I was safe.

I smiled and got into my Mustang. "Sure. Sounds like fun. I'll see you there."

Finn gave me a contented half-smile through my tinted window as I started the motor and waited for Carol to start her car up. I really was glad that I was able to be there for him, but now I had questions that I needed answers to. Maybe I could finally put this whole issue to rest, and get my over my crush on Finn Hudson once and for all.


	33. Chapter 33

Kurt's POV

I arrived at the Hudson house two minutes after Finn and Carol did, parking my car in the driveway next to theirs. They'd left the door unlocked for me, and when I reached the porch I edged it open silently, peering in through the small crack. Finn and his Mom were removing their coats in the front foyer.

"So…?" Carol ventured. "What did you think of Greg?"

She opened the front closet and grabbed two coat hangers. Finn remained expressionless and spoke like he was reading a poorly rehearsed dialogue.

"He's cool… I guess. He has nice… teeth… and stuff."

Carol probably wouldn't have noticed if he'd said that Greg looked like a purple elephant on meth. She grinned and said "That's great, Finny. I'm sure you two are going to be good friends."

I chose this moment to give a small knock and open the door the rest of the way.

"Oh, hi Kurt! Come in, come in…" she ushered me inside and took my coat. Finn threw his into a corner. His Mom didn't even notice.

"I've already called your father, Kurt. He said it was fine, as long as you're in bed at a reasonable hour."

"Don't worry," I assured her, "I'd wouldn't sacrifice my beauty sleep for just anything."

"So," she clasped her hands together. "If you two want anything more to eat, it's in the fridge. Oh, and Finn? Get Kurt some of your old clothes for pajamas. If you need me, I'll be in my room. I'm simply _exhausted_! Thank you so much for coming to dinner with us, Kurt. Goodnight!" with that she departed up the stairs in her purple ankle-length dress that looked good on her, but was probably from the last era or two. Greg hadn't seemed to have minded, so I decided not to either. Once she was out of sight, I turned to Finn.

"So?"

"So?" he smiled bleakly and shut off the hall light, starting up the staircase.

I followed. "What did you really think of him?" I asked quietly.

Finn shrugged and sighed. "He was fine. There's nothing _wrong_ with him, really. He just seemed a little…"

"Controlling? Strict? Stubborn? Old?" I offered out suggestions as we reached the door of his room.

Finn chuckled humorously. "Yeah. But he's good for Mom, I guess. It's just been us for so long, though. It's hard to get used to, you know?"

"Yes," I said truthfully. Carol had seemed rather enthralled in her new boyfriend that night, and it _had_ seemed like something more than just early-relationship-stage bliss. It had just seemed like it was going to… last. It made me feel sorry for Finn… the fact that in the future he may gain a step-father that he didn't particularly like. He wouldn't be the only man in his mother's life anymore. It was sad. I decided to wait before pressing the Rachel issue any further.

Finn gave me an old pair of plaid track pants and a red McKinley t-shirt that probably fit him when he was ten.

After we'd both changed, we sat in his room with an American Idol rerun marathon on TV, talking about Regionals, to which there were only twelve days left. Mr. Schuster had given us our rooming arrangement for the hotel stay in Toledo, and I was paired with Artie, and Finn with Matt. We were competing with nine other schools, but Vocal Adrenaline was still _the_ team to beat. We'd heard from Rachel, who'd taken the opportunity to spy on one of their rehearsals, that they were doing 'Highway to Hell' and some song from 'A Chorus Line,' along with other, quote, 'top notch, first place selections.'

"I'm really looking forward to it, you know?" Finn told me. "I mean, this time there won't be any mess ups, like me freaking out over Quinn or anything like that. It'll just be normal, and fun."

It didn't matter whether they'd enrolled Broadway actors in their group, we'd still win. They might have had more practice and a bigger ensemble, but we had more talent, and more heart. We _wanted_ it more, and we would get it.

We turned off the TV at around eleven. Finn insisted I have the bed, and pulled out a few blankets to form a makeshift bed on the floor bedside it. After he turned off the light and everything was silent, it finally dawned on me that I was in Finn Hudson's bed wearing Finn Hudson's clothes. His bed was soft, comfortable, unlike mine, which was a hard and stiff Swiss therapeutic memory foam bed. Settling in, I pulled his covers up around my neck. They smelled like him: like comfort, and Old Spice, and… boy. The overwhelming power of it all was almost enough to lull me to sleep, but not before I remembered why I was there in the first place.

"Finn?"

"Yeah?"

"Why is there Bio-freeze in your bathroom beside your toothpaste?"

It seemed like a logical way to start a conversation.

"Um… uh… just, uh… growing pains…"

"Oh. …So there's something that I've been meaning to ask you about. I just need your opinion, that's all.'

"Sure. Anything."

"Okay, for the past week some guy has been leaving all these gifts and notes in my locker, like a 'secret admirer' sort of thing, and I have no idea who it could be. I mean, there was everything from a shirt to chocolates to a gigantic teddy bear. And yesterday Mercedes and I walked outside after Glee rehearsal and my car was covered in red roses! It took us three full garbage bags to package them all up get them all back to my house! And then, after that, in my locker…" I felt the familiar buzz of excitement that I felt whenever I thought of my final gift. "…I just couldn't believe it, Finn. It must have cost whoever bought it a fortune!"

"What was it?"

"EIGHT tickets to the Broadway tour production of Wicked in Toledo in January! Isn't that amazing? I actually _fainted_ after I discovered them." I was momentarily distracted by the thought of how much nicer it would have been to fall into Finn's arms after I went out cold instead of hitting my head on the floor like I had.

"Eight!" I continued. "Those tickets sold out in three hours at the box office… they must have been impossible to find anywhere else! Oh my God, I think I'm in love…" I fake swooned for his amusement.

"With the guy?" he said, dead seriously.

"No! With the tickets! I don't even know who it is yet! But that's what I wanted to ask. Any suggestions?"

I pushed myself up and leaned on my elbows so that I could see him. He was on his back covered a few blankets that didn't even reach halfway down his legs. With his hands crossed over his stomach, he still somehow managed to look comfortable.

"It's probably the person you least expect it to be."

"My gosh, Finn! You sound just like Mercedes! But that's the problem… I don't know who I least expect it to be! I don't know how I'll ever figure it out, either!"

There was silence from below, and Finn's eyes were slowly closing.

"Finn?"

"Mmm… yeah?"

It was now or never… better to strike while the iron was hot and the Finn was falling asleep.

"Who did you sing that song to? On Monday? In Glee?" I asked him quietly, not pressuring an answer, hoping to tap through to some level of sleeping subconscious that wouldn't record the fact that he was telling me who he'd serenaded. Would it be Brit? Santana? _Mercedes?_ It seemed as if though none of these was possible… but it had to be someone, didn't it? For the first few seconds I didn't get an answer. I was fully expecting to hear snoring next and nothing else, but alternatively I heard something riveting. It made my heart stop right then and there in Finn Hudson's bed. Something that made it 100% harder to crush my expectations of something that he and I could have _together_. And it was only one word, too.

One word that stole one whole night's worth of beauty sleep.

Uttered in a soft, sure, sleepy tone that would plague my mind for the rest of the week.

"You."


	34. Chapter 34

Rachel's POV

I didn't bother speaking to Noah at Saturday's Glee rehearsal. If he was just going to pop into my life, play with my heart, and walk out again, then I had no use for him. I had no use for him either way! He was an immature, incompetent Neanderthal who cared about no one and nothing but himself, and I wouldn't let _him_ ruin my chances at becoming a star.

On another note, Dad and Daddy made me a Regionals! poster to hang in front of my Elliptical, and we'd started a countdown on the kitchen calendar. We'd called the whole family and invited them to the competition. Daddy even called some agents he knew and asked them if they would like to come and see me sing… the whole nine yards. It might have been a little overboard, but I needed a goal to take my mind of other things. Namely: Kurt, Finn, and Noah.

I'd forced myself to briefly acknowledge the facts: Kurt and Finn deserved each other. I may have fudged things up a bit by telling myself that they deserved each other because they were both mean, horrible people, but the principle holds. Finn and I would never be together. And now I had Noah Puckerman on my back, probably result of some conquest to make out with every single girl at McKinley. That being said, he'd already achieved _that_, and it didn't explain why he was still coming around. I mean, he was a stud (a jerk, yes,) but a stud, and I was just some dorky girl that nobody liked. I told myself that the problem would probably be solved once Quinn had her baby, and Noah realized he was really in love with her, and stopped wasting his precious time with me.

But until then…

I began working on a ballad for Regionals. The other songs we were doing had solos, but they had an ensemble part too, and this year the rule was one completely solo performance was required for competition. Mr. Schuster, in private, of course, confided in me that he thought I was the only one who would be able to hand it along with everything else, so I accepted the offer and threw myself into preparations.

I finished every single morsel of school work and extra credit projects that I had in the house.

I posted five MySpace videos a day.

I went to dance class and stayed an extra two hours to work on my pirouettes.

I did anything and everything I could to forget about the fact that I was rooming with Quinn in the hotel for Regionals, the boy of my dreams was _gay_, and it was pretty near _impossible _that we'd be good enough to beat Vocal Adrenaline in the two weeks we had left to prepare, and if we didn't place, Glee would be over forever.

Long story short, all the things in life at that point seemed to be headed towards impact with a giant brick wall. Every scenario that I imaged: what Regionals would be like, that Finn would realized that he was meant for me, that Mr. Schuster would learn how to dance… seemed to end in unhappiness. There was only one thing in my life that wasn't a certain dead end.

There was one particular thing whose course I wasn't aware of, and probably never would be. Noah Puckerman.


	35. Chapter 35

Puck's POV

My baby girl was due in exactly fifty two days. Even when everything else in my life was totally going off the deep end, I knew one thing for sure: my baby girl was due in exactly fifty two days. When I lay in bed at night, instead of thinking about all the messed up stuff that's happening, I just repeat that to myself. It's the only thing that can get me to sleep. Yeah, sure, my ex best friend turned gay. Yeah, sure I had a reputation to live up to in Glee club, seeing as Regionals were only twelve days away. Yeah, sure, I couldn't get that loud, annoying, overconfident Rachel Berry out of my head.

But my baby girl was due in fifty two days. And I was nowhere near ready to be a father. I lie and I steal to get my way in the world, and most of the time it works, but even _I_ know that that's no way to raise a baby.

Everybody thinks I'm some sort of stupid, brainless bully. I guess I do bully people, but the only reason I do it is so that I can get ahead. When you bully people, you hold the power, and I am NOT gonna be a Lima loser for the rest of my life, no matter what anybody says.

People hate on me just because I was the first one to crack the infamous high school code. People like normality; familiarity. If someone is different, everyone else wants to knock them off of their high horse. If you're the one doing the knocking, it's an instant ticket to popularity, and it means instant connections to very thankful people. But the truth is: if there were any other way to get ahead, I wouldn't be doing what I do. I don't _like_ hurting people. But I've got to.

Quinn had barely even spoken to me in the past three months. I found out from Mercedes that she was gonna give the baby to Mr. and Mrs. Schuster, but it turns out they got divorced, so that's not happening. I don't even know if she's gonna keep her anymore. I don't see how she can't, though. Who would be crazy enough to give up their daughter to complete strangers? But Quinn told Finn she didn't want to keep it. Quinn wanted to give our baby girl up, and I probably wouldn't even be able to say hello to her once.

I couldn't let her do that! I couldn't let her take something that was half mine and throw it away. I know that she didn't want me to have a say in it, but I had a right. What if she gave the baby up to somebody bad? What if they hit her, like my father hit me? What if she didn't have a good life, because Quinn gave her up? _I _was her father, and _I _would protect her. Quinn, like everybody else in this stupid town, thought that I was a low life, but I wasn't. I only needed a chance to prove it: a chance that I would never get if she gave that baby girl away.

I'd been saving all of my money. I even stopped buying dip. I had four thousand bucks stuffed in a shoebox under my bed, all for her. I'd never _loved_ Quinn. She, at the time, had been just another girl. Now she was the mother of my child, and I loved that baby girl inside of her more than I thought it was possible to love anything. I only had fifty two days to save her from a life with complete strangers, because even if your dad turns out to be a bad dad, it's better to have a Lima loser father than to not know one at all.


	36. Chapter 36

Will's POV

In the wee hours of Monday morning, Emma and I were sitting across from each other at our glass dining room table that was too big for the condo. Between us were scattered papers: discarded setlists, sheet music, Rules and Regulations for Regionals. As the hours pressed on, Emma sighed sweetly, but didn't complain about our lack of sleep. We'd been up night after night, trying to pull everything together in the twelve… now eleven days we had left. Emma hadn't said a word about the fact that we hadn't been to bed for twenty seven hours, whereas Terri would have been long gone by now. I penned another possible setlist and slid it across the table for her approval. She eyed it tiredly before saying,

"Will, it's great, but you forgot Rachel's ballad again." She slid it back to me. I closed my eyes and let my head fall forward into my hands.

"We have to be at work in four and a half hours," she reminded me gently. I jolted myself awake… again. I grabbed my pen for the countless time that night and crossed out a random selection, adding Rachel's selection in its place. Emma glanced at it again.

"Will, I know you want to please everybody, but I really don't think we'll be able to do Bust a Move. Okay?"

I really don't know what I'd do without her. She was the only thing keeping me sane… and awake.

We'd been working ourselves like dogs. We called the hotel to make sure they still had enough rooms, spoken to the director of the competition a dozen times about two dozen different things, bought at least $70 worth of sheet music, gone over the rules 393 times, and tried to come up with a setlist, with no success whatsoever.

So far this is what we had:

She's So High- Solo: Finn

Nolita Fairytale- Solo: Kurt

Finn's Mashup- Solo: Finn

Cross My Heart- Boys Only- Solo: Puck

My Life Would Suck Without You- All

People Who Need People- Rachel

Neither of us was pleased with it. It just didn't seem to… fit, for some reason.

"Why don't we go to bed?" Emma suggested. "We'll keep the first three and Rachel's ballad for sure, and we'll figure out the other two later, okay?"

Succumbing to pure fatigue, I nodded. We had until lunch time, anyway. We headed through the crowded condo towards the bedroom. The truth was, even though I was exhausted, I wouldn't be able to sleep anyway. We had eleven days… that'd be only about twenty rehearsals left until we had to perform for the judges at Regionals. And if we weren't ready… if we didn't place… Glee club would be over, and Figgins would start using the choir room for his Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. These kids would have nowhere else where they would really belong, and it would all be my fault.

I tried to put this aside and at least get some sleep before the dreaded alarm went off at quarter after six. I collapsed onto the bed, Emma lying beside me.

Five minutes later, I was up again. I got dressed this time, but left the hall lights off so Emma could sleep. I went through all of the sheet music on the table again, looking for something that would be easy enough to learn and sound amazing at the same time. My eyes were drooping, and I didn't know how I'd possibly make it through the rest of the day, but I couldn't let these kids down. I couldn't let Emma down.

I don't know how long she'd been standing there before I noticed her. Her arms were wrapped around her torso, fastening a purple silk housecoat to her figure. She gave me a hopeful smile and crossed the floor, taking her seat across from me again. That's why I loved her… she knew me. She knew why I was doing this.

She slowly slid her smaller hand over mine. "Will, everything will be okay. It always is. The kids will be great. I know it."

I think I managed a dopey smile. "I gotta get this finished…" I said incompetently. She eased the sheet out from under my arms with her free hand.

"Let me do it," she insisted. I didn't even have the energy to respond. I crumpled onto my forearms right there on the table and fell asleep thinking about how much I was in love with Emma. It was making me completely crazy… I'd never felt this way about anyone before, not even Terri when we'd first met. And Glee was the whole reason we'd even started talking in the first place. I owed it all to this club, to these kids, and now I had to fight to keep Figgins from destroying it. If we didn't have Glee Club anymore, we wouldn't have anything.


	37. Chapter 37

Mercedes's POV

As of late Sunday night, I hadn't heard from either Finn or Kurt since Friday, and it worried me. Kurt had totally flipped when he'd found the Wicked tickets… he knew it wasn't Puck… yet I still had a feeling something had gone wrong. If everything was fine, Kurt would have called me to ask what he should wear in January… then would have shot all of my suggestions down. Still, he hadn't called. I'd tried calling both of them, but neither picked up.

It could have been that it was just my anxiety causing me to feel guilty. I hadn't noticed that neither of them had called until I was lying in bed on Sunday night. I had a good reason though… I'd finally got my first real date ever.

It was everything I'd imagined it to be. My Mom fixed my hair, my Dad waited by the door with a figurative shotgun. It was so generic, so first-date-ish, that I almost mistook the whole night for a scene out of a chick flick. In a good way, of course. A sweet, romantic candlelight dinner that ended in a long awaited first kiss on my front porch. Enough to make your heart flutter, and make you want to tell your best friend about it, right? Tell him how perfect Matt was, how expensive the date must have been, how your first kiss felt? I did want to, and that's how I remembered that he hadn't called at all. Which had to mean that something was wrong.

I didn't expect Kurt to pick me up on Monday morning, so I hitched a ride with Matt. For the first time since I'd remembered about Kurt and Finn, I got lost in thoughts about my own life. I deserved that, didn't I? After all, I'd spent the last month wooing Kurt for Finn. I should have been allowed to get caught up in the beautiful newness of my relationship with Matt. The wait was over… I finally had a boyfriend! When we arrived at school, we walked in together, expecting to become the hot new couple gossip of the day. But, when we walked into the front halls, there were barely any people there at all. As we continued walking, we spotted a clump of kids, and even some teachers, big enough to make up three quarters of the student body. They were all gathered around a center, all leaning in close to get a piece of the action. I hurried down the hall ahead of Matt, yearning to find out what was going on. I shoved my way into the middle of the congregation. Jacob, McKinley's very own weasely gossip monger, was standing on top of the water fountain, entertaining the underdeveloped minds of half the school with his latest scoop. The faces of the kids all looked shocked. Rachel was standing just outside of the crowd by her locker, a satisfied sneer playing at her lips. I positioned myself beside the water fountain and tugged on Jacob's pant leg.

"What in the world is going on?" I shouted up to him.

His face lit up. "Haven't you heard? Finn Hudson's playing secret admirer with the gay kid!"


	38. Chapter 38

Kurt's POV

I took off around five in the morning, on Sunday, before anyone was up. I left a note on the Hudson's kitchen table, thanking them for their hospitality and letting me stay over. I needed to be away from Finn. There was no way he would've sung that song for me. There was no way, and there was no use getting myself all twisted up over it. So, I left.

He was half asleep when he'd said it. He probably hadn't even heard the question correctly. I had to forget about the whole thing before I actually started believing what he'd said. He didn't even know how badly he was playing with my heart, without even doing anything.

My Dad was already up brewing coffee by the time I arrived. As soon as I walked in the door, I was barricaded with questions.

"Whose house were you at, again?"

"Finn's, Dad."

"Why?"

"Because I went out to dinner with him, his mother, and her boyfriend, and it was late. Carol didn't want me driving home alone."

"Is he gay?"

I stopped in my path to my bedroom. Dad was always one for overstepping boundaries.

"Dad, nothing happened. He is _not_ gay. Why would you even _ask_ that? Don't you trust me?" Okay, I admit it: I am extremely cranky when I don't get at least seven hours of sleep. I stormed down the basement, looking for some kind of solace.

I hated this. I hated all of this! Finn Hudson was not gay, but I couldn't take my mind off of him either way. My Mom used to say that if you couldn't go a day without thinking about something, you wouldn't be able to live without it. She was right. I don't think I could live without Finn, but I could never have him in the way I wanted him either. There was no in between, no safe compromise. So it was either give him up completely, or keep on putting myself in the line of fire for him.

But what if he actually had sung the song for me? What if those beautiful lyrics were meant for my ears? _What if Finn was my secret admirer_?

Ugh! This was my problem! I was stuck in an endless loop of painful 'what ifs?' and I couldn't seem to break out of it.

Finn did NOT sing that song for me, and he most definitely NOT my secret admirer. Finn could NEVER love me the way I love him. He liked _girls_. Shouldn't that have been enough to convince me?

It never was. It never would be. There was something inside of me that, every time, convinced me not to give up. Convinced me that I had been right; Finn _was_ the one. Ha. Yeah right. Who was I kidding?

I had to get out of here. I had to go someplace where… where… where there were no Finn Hudsons and no deranged boys leaving front row tickets to my favorite musical in my locker!

Succumbing to the fact that I couldn't, even if I actually wanted to, I put on my coveralls without even bothering to wash my face or brush my hair. I spent all of Sunday in the garage with my Dad, filling my head with thoughts of broken rims and clogged engines instead of Finn.

Monday came all too soon. I barely made the tardy bell, and when I sprinted into English class, everyone's eyes were on me. I quickly took a seat beside some random football player and pulled out my notebook to start taking notes. Halfway though class, he leaned over and whispered: "Is it true?"

"Is what true?"

"Mr. Olson and Mr. Hummel… do you two have something you'd like to share with the rest of the class?"

"No, Mrs. Baker," we mumbled in unison.

What was going on? People were still staring at me, and asking me if 'it' was true. Deciding that my best was to ignore them, I kept my head low for the next two classes. After Biology, Mercedes met me at my locker.

"What's wrong with you?" I asked, looking her up and down. She looked stressed, worried, and she was ringing her hands like crazy. I laughed out loud. "Did someone finally burn your technicolor zebra sweater?"

"So you haven't… oh, good." She let out the biggest sigh I'd ever heard.

"I haven't what? What's going on, 'Cedes? Everyone is looking at me funny, and people keep asking me if it's true, and if I've heard 'the news'!"

"I… have… no idea," she lied lamely. I rolled my eyes.

"I _will_ find out, you know," I assured her as we walked to Glee together. As soon as we opened the door, I knew something weird was going on, and I was obviously the only one not in the know.

Mr. Schuster looked like he was going to fall asleep at his desk, Finn looked like he was going to explode or something, Santana, Brit, Tina, and Artie looked nervous, Puck looked positively dismal, and Rachel was smirking. Miss Pillsbury was standing in a corner, observing us. We started practice with a tense energy. Mr. Schuster dozed off twice, and Miss Pillsbury had to poke him to keep him awake. It was disastrous… no one could seem to focus, and they all kept glancing at me anxiously. Especially Finn, who was probably still wondering why I'd bolted on Sunday morning. He probably didn't even remember what he'd told me the night before.

Suddenly I felt nauseous. I left the room and sprinted to the bathroom halfway through my solo, reminiscent of the way Quinn had in the early months of her pregnancy. It took me a few seconds to realize that she was following me. I ducked into the girl's washroom and took a seat on the heater in the corner. Seconds later, she walked in and took a seat next to me.

"You okay?"

"I'm fine," I snapped. "I just feel sick."

She chuckled mirthlessly. "I know how you feel," she placed a hand on her expanding belly.

I rolled my eyes. I was not in the mood. "Why do you care?"

She looked slightly offended. "I'm just trying to be nice, Kurt."

"Well, don't." I started to get up and walk away.

"Kurt," she called me back, "I heard what happened."

Strange, since I hadn't yet heard myself. I turned back slowly.

"Have you talked to him yet?" Quinn wondered.

"To who?"

"Finn."

_Finn_.

"What about Finn?"

Quinn looked confused. "Oh… you don't… nobody told you? Oh my God, you don't know! I'm so sorry… I never should have said anything." She hurried out, leaving me very, very befuddled. What did I have to talk to Finn about? It seemed the whole school knew, all except me.

After Glee, I went up to Finn. Said hello. Didn't mention what he'd said on Saturday night. Asked him why everybody was asking me about him.

"I… uh… I dunno…"

I asked Tina.

I asked Artie.

I even asked Rachel.

I asked half of the student body, for goodness sakes!

All of them said the same thing: 'You haven't heard?'

They didn't tell me anything else. So, I did the easiest thing I could think of. I ignored them all.

I did this for seven whole days: Monday to Monday. I, like the rest of the club, readily threw myself into preparations for Regionals. I got the costumes for my number all sorted out. We decided on a setlist. Mr. Schuster threw in an extra morning practice. The fact that we were leaving for Toledo in just over two days loomed over us like a dark storm cloud. We were certainly _good_, but we weren't excellent. And we _needed _to be excellent.

Still, in between classes, people would stare at me in the halls and whisper to each other. It was clear that I was part of the biggest piece of gossip McKinley had heard in years, and I didn't even know what it was. No matter how many times I tried to shove it to the back of mind and focus on Glee, I couldn't. Then, one day, after one too many whispers and one too many giggles, I snapped. I couldn't take it anymore! I was going to find out what was going on, once and for all!

I pulled all of the girls, except for Quinn and Rachel, out into the hall after school on Tuesday.

"Pack and extra pair of clothes in your Regionals suitcase, ladies," I demanded, "and be at my house at eight tonight. I need to talk to all of you."

Several of them noticeably gulped, but none refused.

I was finally going to find out what everyone was talking about.


	39. Chapter 39

Burt's POV

He was talking. He talked. He was talking to me, and he wasn't avoiding me any more than he usually did, which I took as a good sign. But when he came home one day, looking more miserable than I'd seen him in a long time, I started making calls. He didn't notice… he spent most of the week down in his room listening to music and whatever else he did while he was alone.

I'd had about a dozen offers on the garage over the past three years, so that wouldn't be much of a problem. I'd called a real estate agent to see how much we'd get for the house. Jamie and I had inherited millions from her parents, but we'd put most of it away for Kurt when he was older. I started looking into apartments and houses anywhere with a heartbeat. Anywhere within a ten mile radius of an Ivy League school. Anywhere he could dance and sing and be himself.

He walked in on Tuesday and plucked the phone from the table where I was sitting.

"What're you doing?" I asked.

"Ordering pizza," he said simply. "The girls are coming over tonight."

"Don't you gotta pack for that… Regionals thing tonight?"

"Yeah, I'll do it later, Dad," he said, rolling his eyes. Before he could look down at the table, I shuffled the papers that said how much we'd have to pay rent for a nice New York penthouse so he wouldn't be able to see them. It didn't matter, because ten seconds later he was back downstairs with his music again.

Selling the garage and moving thousands of miles away would all be worth it if it could bring him out of his damn room for more than ten minutes at a time. That was all I wanted.


	40. Chapter 40

Tina's POV

We'd all met up in front of Kurt's house at eight on Tuesday, loaded down with multiple suitcases and duffel bags, ready for our free stay at a first class hotel in Toledo. After, of course, we took care of Kurt

"So," I said aloud what everyone in the group was thinking. "Are we going to tell him? If he asks, I mean?" It was getting easier to talk without my stutter, but it still felt strange.

Santana and Brittany both shrugged, Mercedes twirled a strand of hair around her index finger, and Rachel stood with her arms crossed tightly across her chest. Nobody answered me. I didn't even know why Rachel was there. Kurt hadn't invited her, but Mercedes insisted she'd come. Something told me she'd rather be at home.

The night air was chilly and the last remaining leaves on the trees danced down around the tree trunks.

"We'll just have to see how things go," Mercedes said finally. She rang the doorbell, and a short moment later, Kurt was there, ushering us all in and taking our bags down to his room. Mercedes and Brittany took a seat on the bed, Rachel took Kurt's bucket chair, and Santana and I placed ourselves cross-legged on the floor. Kurt's iPod was on in the background, playing Taylor Swift.

_You're on the phone with your girlfriend_

_She's upset_

_She's goin' off about somthin' that you said_

'_Cause she doesn't get your humor like I do._

Kurt didn't waste any time getting down to business. His arms were crossed and he looked annoyed and tired.

"So, obviously you guys, along with the whole school, know something about my personal life that I happen not to be privy to. And I want to know what's going on. Now." He sounded insistent, but none of us wanted to be the one to burst the bubble, so we stayed silent.

_I'm in the room_

_It's a typical Tuesday night_

_I'm listenin' to the kind of music she doesn't like_

_And she'll never know your story like I do…_

"Come on, guys!" he raised his voice. Brittany flinched. "I thought you were my friends! Why won't you just tell me?"

Rachel cleared her throat from where she was sitting. "I figure since all of you hate me already, and nothing I can do or say is going to change that, I might as well own up now. I was the one who told Jacob." She turned to Kurt. "But you deserved it!"

Kurt threw his hands up in the air, exasperated.

Anger flashed in Mercedes's eyes. "Do you not realize what you've done?" she yelled at Rachel. "You ruined everything!" she stood up from the bed and advanced towards Rachel, looking like she was going to tackle her.

"Why would you do that?" Santana asked, scrutinizingly. "What have you got against two people being happy?"

"EVERYONE JUST SHUT UP!" Kurt ordered.

I squeezed my eyes shut and let Taylor Swift fill my head.

_But she wears short skirts,_

_I wear t-shirts_

_She's cheer captain_

_And I'm on the bleachers_

_Dreamin' 'bout the day_

_When you'll wake up and find_

_That what you're lookin' for _

_Has been here the whole time_

I hated drama.

"What is this big secret? And why can't I know?"

"Kurt…" Mercedes had softened, "you shouldn't be finding out this way."

"No!" Santana agreed. "He shouldn't! Finn should be the one telling him, and that's why we aren't going to."

"Telling me what!"

"Come on, Santana," Brittany jumped in, "we all know that Finn is too chicken to tell him."

"TELL ME WHAT?"

"Kurt!"

"Just tell me!"

_If you could see that I'm the one who understands you_

_Been here all along_

_So why can't you see?_

_You belong with me,_

_You belong with me._

"We can't tell you!" Santana pressed. "It isn't our place. It wasn't our place in the first place!" she glared at Rachel.

"This is all _your_ fault!" Mercedes screamed at Rachel again.

"This is so not my fault!" Rachel protested. "He would have found out anyway!"

"Oh, my God! What is wrong with you people! It can't be that bad!" Kurt had his hands clenched into fists beside his hips. His face was gradually turning redder.

_Walkin' the streets_

_With you and your worn out jeans_

_I can't help thinkin' this is how it ought to be_

_Laughin' on a park bench,_

_Thinkin' to myself_

'_Hey, isn't this easy?'_

We were leaving for Regionals tomorrow, and now everyone was screaming and yelling at each other.

"You just did it because you wanted _Finn_ for yourself!" Santana spat. This was probably true.

"I did not!" Rachel whined. "For your information, I am so over Finn Hudson. I just think what he's doing is morally wrong."

"What is wrong with it?" Mercedes looked ready to slap someone. "What in the world is wrong with being in love with someone!"

"Will someone _please_ just tell me what is going on!"

_And you've got a smile_

_That could light up this whole town_

_I haven't seen it in a while_

_Since she brought you down_

_You say you're fine,_

_I know you better than that._

_Hey what cha doing_

_With a girl like that?_

Silence overtook the room. Rachel looked like she was going to burst out in tears.

"Please," Kurt pleaded quietly. "I promise I won't blame anyone. I just want to know."

Several moments passed.

"He was supposed to be mine," Rachel whispered, crystalline tears finding their way down her cheeks.

"You don't deserve him!" Mercedes started the screaming match back up.

"Neither does he!"

"Why not?"

"Because Finn is _not_ gay!"

"Rachel, shut up!"

"Don't you tell me to…"

"Please, just be quiet and tell me what's going on!"

"No!"

"No!

"NO!"

I stayed out of it.

_She wears high heels_

_I wear sneakers_

_She's cheer captain_

_And I'm on the bleachers_

_Dreamin' 'bout the day_

_When you wake up and find_

_That what you're lookin' for_

_Has been here the whole time._

How were we ever going to be able to win Regionals like this? If someone didn't tell him soon…

"EVERYBODY JUST CALM DOWN!" Kurt yelled over the ruckus. "I just need one person," he said tensely, "to explain to me in a calm and collection fashion, what the hell is going on here?"

_If you could see that I'm the one who understands you_

_Been here all along, so why can't you see?_

_You belong with me._

_Standing right here, waiting at your back door_

_All this time, how could you not know? Baby,_

_You belong with me,_

_You belong with me._

"Mercedes?" he asked, slowly, patiently…

"I'm so sorry, Kurt. I… I can't."

"Santana?"

"Kurt… you need to hear it from Finn."

"Brittany?"

"I… don't… get… it."

"_Rachel_?"

"Leave me alone."

He sighed, turning to me.

"Tina?"

_Oh, I remember you_

_Drivin' to my house_

_In the middle of the night_

_I'm the one who makes you laugh_

_When you know you're 'bout to cry_

_I know your favorite songs_

_And you tell me 'bout your dreams_

_Think I'll know where you belong_

_Think I'll know it's worth me…_

Everyone's eyes were on me.

"Kurt…" I said slowly.

He really deserved to know. Finn would never tell him unless he asked him outright. Which he wouldn't. Nobody here was going to tell him. No one in school was going to tell him. And we had to perform on Thursday. There were too many things going wrong all ready… he really _deserved _to know…

_Can't you see that I'm the one who understands you?_

_Been here all along, so why can't you see?_

_You belong with me…_

"Don't do it, Tina," Mercedes urged me.

What, would all of that money, all of that time, all of that thought just go to waste? I couldn't let that happen.

_Standing right here, waitin' at your back door_

_All this time, how could you not know? Baby,_

_You belong with me, you belong with me._

It would be a good thing to tell him, right? That's what he wanted, wasn't it?

"Tina…"

Rachel stared at her lap, not daring to look at anyone in the room.

"Kurt," I stammered again. His eyes urged my to just say it. If it were me, I probably would have murdered someone by now.

I took a deep breath.

In. Out.

I think I must've been having an out of body experience. My head swirled and I began to feel dizzy. But I had to do this. Kurt was my friend.

_You belong with me!_

_Have you ever though just maybe,_

_You belong with me?_

"Finn is you secret admirer. And he sang that song for you. He's in love with you."

_You belong with me_.

The last notes of the song echoed throughout the room.

Nobody said a word.

The only sound was the static buzzing of Kurt's iPod dock.

Kurt looked completely shell shocked.

Mercedes and Santana looked disappointed.

Rachel started to cry.

Kurt started to cry.

Brittany looked confused.

The door handle at the top of the stairs clicked open.

Kurt whirled around.

Burt entered, smiling, carrying three large, square boxes.

"Pizza, anyone?"


	41. Chapter 41

Finn's POV

The day we'd headed off to Regionals was the one day in the history of forever that my Mom didn't have to drag me out of bed. In fact, I'd been up all night long. I was bored, so I'd dressed at five in the morning and lay in bed for two hours after that. I was in the kitchen before Mom was even there. I had three bowls of cereal. I was almost dreading meeting the rest of the Glee Club in that parking lot, but they were counting on me. I couldn't just blow them off like I had last time.

The thing was, last night Mercedes had called me from her cell phone, in Kurt's bathroom. She'd said it was an emergency… that Kurt had found out that I was his secret admirer. She wouldn't tell me how he was taking it; she just said that I should talk to him. And since then, I hadn't been able to sleep

My Mom and I arrived outside of the school right on time. Everyone was already there, standing in their groups, waiting for Mr. Schuster to let them get on the bus. I couldn't stand with Rachel, or with Puck and the football guys, or Kurt and the girls, so I went and stood by Quinn. She smiled at me, and I smiled back at her. We might not have been best friends, but we had forgiven each other. Being with her felt… safe.

Mom was driving up with Greg to watch the competition, but they was only staying in the hotel that night, and heading back on Thursday afternoon because Greg had to work.

Mr. Schu looked tired and kind of lost, but he was there, and that was all that mattered. Miss Pillsbury was by his side, looking a little uneasy. Everyone looked mad at each other, really.

On the bus it got worse. I sat alone at the back. Kurt sat alone at the front. Rachel sat alone. Quinn sat alone. Puck sat alone. Mercedes and Matt, Artie and Tina, and Santana and Brittany were together, though. Mike was talking to Miss Pillsbury and Mr. Schu. The bus ride was supposed to be the funnest part! Everyone was supposed to be singing, and laughing, and talking, but no one was. Instead, everything was seemed on edge.

I still couldn't believe that Kurt knew it was me. He hadn't looked at me or spoken to me all morning. What if he didn't like me anymore? Mercedes said he had… but that was before… What if he rejected me?

Halfway through the two hour trip, we stopped at a fast food joint for a break, and I decided to take a chance. Kurt hadn't gotten off of the bus. He was slumped in his seat with his headphones in his ears. I cautiously sauntered up to him. His eyes flicked towards me, and flicked back to his iPod just as quickly. He didn't look back up, but he paused the music and took both headphones out, as if to say 'talk.'

It was then that I realized I really should have planned this all out beforehand. Words were not my strong point.

"Uh, hi," I hesitated. Kurt raised his eyebrows without looking at me. I was messing up already.

"So… uh… I guess you heard, huh?"

Kurt nodded.

"I just want to say…"

What _did _I want to say?

"I want to say that that all of it's true. I really, really like you, Kurt. I really want to be with you." When this prompted no response from him, I carried on.

"Kurt, listen to me… I will do _whatever_ it takes, I swear."

He shook his head.

"What?" I asked.

For the first time all day, he looked up at me. Tears were sparkling in his gorgeous blue-green eyes, but just a few. He looked exhausted, hurt, and vulnerable all at the same time.

"Wicked tickets, Finn?" his voice faltered with anguish. "Really?" he paused. "Why me?"

I wanted to answer that question, I really did… but I knew that whatever I said, he wouldn't believe me. Kurt raised his hand slightly, as if he was going to reach up and touch mine. He didn't. He let it drop back down to his lap. His eyes bored into mine, making every cell inside my body heat up.

"What do you want me to do?" I asked him. Because I hadn't been kidding when I'd said I'd so anything.

He didn't break our gaze: the one connection we held. I could see the breath flow in and out of his chest slowly and steadily. A singular tear fell from his cheek and ended it journey on his worn black skinny jeans. People started tramping back onto the bus.

"Just… give me time, Finn. I need time to think."

As Mercedes passed by, eyeing us suspiciously, he put his headphones back in and started staring out the window. The bus lurched forwards and I had no choice but to sit back down in my seat and wonder how long it was going to take.


	42. Chapter 42

Will's POV

We arrived at the Hilton Hotel in Toledo around ten thirty on Wednesday. I let the kids get to their rooms and unpack. The hotel had given us the whole sixth floor to ourselves, and luckily had elevators big enough for Artie's chair.

The people whose parents had come took them out to lunch around noon and the rest tagged along with whoever invited them. Emma and I took cover in one of the hotel's buffet restaurants. As we ate our lunch, we discussed things that we already knew.

We had our setlist.

Our choreography was as good as it was going to get.

Our vocals were amazing, as always.

The Vocal Adrenaline dance and coaches were sitting behind us.

We believed in the kids, didn't we?

They could pull off third place. Maybe second.

We _could_ make it to Nationals.

There was a chance that Glee wouldn't be cancelled.

Not a big one, but it was there.

We had two rehearsal slots booked for us in one of the hotel's bigger conference rooms: one for Wednesday afternoon, and one for Thursday morning before the competition. Only four hours of rehearsal time left, and then we had to perform in front of those judges. I was learning that actually being at the competition was a lot more nerve racking than being on the phone with someone who was there. The legendary butterflies had already taken up residence in my stomach, and weren't planning on leaving.

We all met up in the Roosevelt Conference Room at one o'clock on the dot. I could tell the kids were nervous too… they certainly looked the part. We got all of the costumes out of their carry bags and made sure that everyone had their own.

We started out with 'She's So High'. All of the kids were dressed in their gold dress shirts and black jeans; the costumes we were using for that number, along with 'My Life Would Suck Without You,' and Finn's Mashup. We ran through those three countless times. I gave them a break after that, all expect Rachel, who changed into her ballad costume (a backless, lavender gown similar to Barbara Streisand's when she sang the song in Funny Girl) and wowed us all with her finished product.

That was one of the things I loved about Rachel: you could always count on her to impress. She took a slow, angst-y love song and made it into the most beautiful, interesting thing any of us had ever heard. I'm guessing I wasn't the only one who noticed that she was staring at Puck the whole time she sang it.

"_People,_

_People who need… people,_

_Are the luckiest people _

_In the world._

_Where children,_

_Needing other children_

_And yet letting a grown up _

_Hide all the need inside,_

_Acting more like children, than children._

_Lovers, a very special people_

_They're the luckiest people_

_In the world._

_There'll be one person, one very special person_

_A feeling deep in your soul_

_Says you are half, now you're whole_

_No more hunger and thirst_

_But first be a person who needs people_

_People who need people_

_Are the luckiest people _

_In the world…_

The parents who were watching the rehearsal applauded wildly as she finished, especially her two fathers, who surprisingly were two very nice, non-annoying people.

Next, we went through 'What Is This Feeling?' which was still just as… emotionally fueled as it had been when Kurt and Rachel had performed it as their duet for the Glee assignment. Kurt and the rest of the chorus were clad in all white, Rachel in black. We'd even considered green face paint for Rachel, but the idea was cast aside, seeing as we still had another number after that one.

We ended the rehearsal by running 'Nolita Fairytale,' easily the most complicated number, choreography-wise. While the introduction reverberated from the speakers, couples, chosen for relative height, appeared on the stage, the boy twirling the girl as if they were waltzing, and then freezing with their arms up as the next couple came through. It had taken us all week to get the timing of this right… always either beginning to early or ending too late.

By the time the recorded introduction was over, they were in a V formation, Kurt twirling Tina at the front and then taking center stage to begin his solo.

The rest of the number had actually been choreographed by Rachel, after her informing me that if she couldn't have the solo, she would at least be taking credit for the dancing. Kurt and Mercedes had done a wonderful job on the costumes, conjuring up a whole small town Italian village with a few ruffled shirts and sundresses.

So far, that day, practice had gone amazingly… better than any of the rehearsals we'd had in the past two weeks. Now, I was thinking that maybe they _could_ do this… maybe they would take first. It was definitely _possible_.

The only glitch came at the end of 'Nolita.' At the end of the number, while the drum recording was slowly taking over, and the rest of the club was exiting and harmonizing in their different parts, Puck and Matt were supposed to hoist Kurt up gymnast-style on to their shoulders for a perfect finale. Truthfully, the only reason I'd chosen those two was because they were the only two that were strong enough, and that were the same height. This part had always worked well before; Kurt had very good balance, and he'd obviously done this kind of thing before.

But today it went slightly differently.

He got up there fine, posing stably with one of his feet on Puck and Matt's shoulders, arms raised in the air in a victory stance. But then Puck jerked away and Kurt came crashing down so fast no one noticed what had happened until he was on the ground.

Instantly, half of the parents, Mercedes, Finn, and the rest of the girls were surrounding him, propping his head up on a discarded jacket, checking to see if he had a concussion. Much to their dismay, he pushed himself up and out of their protective circle.

"I'm fine," he insisted weakly, clutching his head. "I'm fine, really."

Meanwhile, Finn was across the room, shoving Puck against one of the walls. I started over, to make sure things didn't get out of hand.

"What the hell did you do that for, Puckerman?"

Puck tore away from Finn's grasp, his dark brown eyes flashing with anger. "You think I'm gonna let that _fag_ touch me?" he growled. Then Finn started throwing punches, looking as mad as he had when he'd found out that he wasn't the father of Quinn's baby girl. By the time Matt, Mike, and I broke them apart, Kurt was gone. I dismissed the rest of the club and told them I'd see them at dinner. Little did I know, things could only get worse.


	43. Chapter 43

Mercedes's POV

"Have fun," Mr. Schu had said, "that's what we're here for, after all. Spend some time with each other. Just make sure you're ready for tomorrow."

Almost everyone had gone off to the movies after dinner, or to the arcade, or back up to their hotel rooms. However, I felt like skating, and Mr. Schu had suggested that we go to a neighboring area that didn't close until late. Ah, the beauties of not being in a cow town: their arenas were open till one in the morning. I didn't want to go alone, so I dragged Kurt with me. He hadn't talked to anyone since the incident at rehearsal, and he was silent as he laced up his black figure skates in an empty dressing room.

Apparently, chivalry is not dead, because even though he obviously felt miserable himself, he got on the ice first and held out a hand to help me on. It's no mystery that I suck at skating. My Dad would have taught me if I'd asked, but he's more into backyard football.

The arena was fairly vacant, except for some late night locals.

We lapped the rink together a few times, linked at the arms. Slow music played over scratchy speakers that hung over our heads.

"You helped him, didn't you?" he asked me quietly, after picking me up of the ice for the fifth time and standing me back upright.

There was no use in lying to him anymore than we already had. "Yeah," I nodded, "I did. I thought it was going to be worth it when you found out."

He bobbed his head up and down and I knew he was thinking about how things would have been if they'd gone as planned.

"Have you talked to him yet?" I asked him, one skate sliding out from under me, losing my balance.

He pulled me back up gently. "Not really."

We sidled up to the boards and saw Mr. Schuster and Miss Pillsbury sitting in the penalty box. She was running a towel over the blades of very white figure skates, and he had her arm around her. Kurt and I stopped to watch. When she'd finished cleaning her blades, he leaned in to kiss her tenderly on the lips.

Kurt broke away from me in a fast acceleration, digging his toe pick in halfway across the rink and sent himself spinning in the air. I tripped over to where he'd landed.

"Wow, Kurt! You should be a skater."

He rolled his eyes and muttered to himself, "You should be a skater, Kurt! You should be a gymnast, Kurt! You should be an actor! A singer! I just want to be happy, Mercedes!"

He started up again, sending chips of ice flying everywhere.

Mr. Schu and Miss P got on to the ice and started skating, waving to me as they went by. The clock on the score board changed to 10:00, and the lights automatically dimmed. Mr. Schu and Miss Pillsbury moved closer together. Kurt skated up to me backwards.

"I'm ready to go back," he said with a faked smile. "You?"

"Sure." He helped me off of the ice and back into the dressing room.

As we were walking out into the freezing night back to our hotel, I said: "I know you probably don't want to hear this, Kurt… but he loves you. So what's the problem? I know you like him!"

My voice was absorbed into the night and it seemed like he hadn't even heard me in the first place. He reached down and interlaced his fingers with mine, swinging our hands back and forth like six year olds would do.

"It just doesn't feel… real, Mercedes. Just give me time, okay? Please?"

I squeezed his hand. He squeezed back.

"Okay."


	44. Chapter 44

Rachel's POV

People are always complaining about how hard it is to sleep the night before a competition, or a performance. I've never had trouble sleep the night before a big even though. I actually sleep _better, _and _that _is a sign of a true star.

I sat in the restaurant with Dad and Daddy and some of the other parents until I got tired. When I got up to the room, Quinn was already in her bed, although it was obvious the wasn't asleep. Dad and Daddy came up to kiss me goodnight, but after they left, I felt bad for Quinn. She'd been kicked out by her own _father_. Dad and Daddy would never even dream of doing something like that to me. She'd been living with Brittany's family for the past five months, after she moved out of Finn's, despite his Mom's protesting that she stay until the baby was born. I had to admit, I couldn't possibly conjure how she could be feeling, and I was a _good_ actress. I know I was supposed to hate her and all, but I desperately wanted to comfort her. She'd been tossing and turning all night, and keeping me up.

"Quinn?"

Either she was asleep, or she just didn't want to talk to me. Probably the latter.

"You okay, Quinn?"

"Yes."

"Oh. Well… goodnight."

"Whatever."

I tried to get to sleep after that, but I couldn't. It was a strange feeling: I felt shaky and nervous and out of breath. I began tossing and turning in sync with Quinn. I thought about going into Dad and Daddy's room, but I didn't want to seem childish.

"Um… Rachel?"

"Yeah?" I answered her immediately, if only to distract from my sudden insomnia. I glanced over to where she was lying on her back with both hands on her stomach.

"What… what do you think I should name her?" she asked timidly.

What I said next was probably insensitive, but apparently my mine-mouth filters had gone to sleep before I had. "I thought you were giving her up."

"Would you?" she wondered. Would I? Would I give up my own baby girl just because I was still in high school, and had no home?

"I don't think I'm the right person to be talking to about this, Quinn. I'm sorry."

She sighed. "I try to not think about her so much… so I won't get attached. But I think… I think I might… _love_ her." She said the word 'love' like it was the biggest sin in the world.

I chuckled. "That's normal, Quinn. Don't worry… it's not a disease."

"But I wanted to have a life!" she cried. "I don't want to have some kid whose father isn't even going to stick around!"

"So," I said, "make a life with _her_. She's coming, in two months. There's nothing you can do to change that."

Quinn was silent for a long time, and I wondered if I'd said something wrong. Finally she said: "Thanks, Rachel. I think I needed that."

"No problem."

I felt a wave of fatigue wash over me, and I curled up into my pillow and yawned. I needed to get some sleep. After all, tomorrow was the day that decided whether New Directions would survive or not. Glee was the one _real_ thing that I had, and I couldn't be bear to lose it.


	45. Chapter 45

Emma's POV

Will tossed and turned all night Wednesday. Every once and a while I'd look over and he'd be listlessly staring at the ceiling, barely blinking. The hotel's breakfast buffet opened at 6:00, and by then we were up and waiting at the door for some excuse to leave the stuffy, poorly decorated room. I took my own container of grapes of course, and two containers of WetWipes. You never know with hotels.

Most of the kids, flanked by their parents, were down waiting at the restaurant doors by the time we got there. The lobby of the Hilton was very open and boasted a white marble fountain as a center piece. There were leather couches and armchairs up against the walls. Respectable looking clerks manned the front desk.

Mercedes was flipping through her iPod on one of the couches, Kurt dozing on her shoulder. Mercedes couldn't seem to decide on one song. I wondered how long they'd been down there.

When the owner came down to open the buffet, only half of the crowd waiting in the lobby filed in to find a table. Kurt stayed peacefully asleep, and Mercedes didn't wake him. After we'd settled, Will glanced at them sympathetically over his plate of scrambled eggs and strawberry jam (gross.)

"Probably too nervous to eat," he mumbled through a yellow-red mouthful (gross squared.)

I couldn't blame them. My stomach churned the one grape I'd managed to get down my throat like its sole mission was to tear it to shreds.

"It's gonna be okay, y'know," I said, more to calm my nerves than Will's. It didn't work.

We both knew Figgins wouldn't think twice about cancelling Glee if we didn't place.

The competition started at three, and we'd drawn the sixth performance slot. Vocal Adrenaline was tenth. Freshest on the judge's minds, of course. We had the conference room from two until three, cutting it pretty close.

Until then, we somehow found a way to pass the time without going entirely crazy. Will and I escaped to the lounge, trying to focus on the books we'd brought but failing miserably. I clutched his hand like it was my one salvation. Normally, I wouldn't dare hold hands with anybody, not even my parents. But Will, today, was different. With him, none of the germs even mattered. It was a comfort, for both of us.

At one we went down to the conference room and watched the Vocal Adrenaline rehearsal through the window. They looked _good_. We couldn't hear them, but they looked like they'd been practicing their routines for years. Some of them probably had been, considering how old they looked. Will didn't look nervous anymore; he looked _terrified_.

Almost everybody arrived at two on the dot. Noah Puckerman strutted in at ten after. We'd waited for him, like the fools we all were.

"Okay, guys," Will clapped his hands together. "This is _it. _This performance means _everything_. As you all know, if don't place today, Glee is _over_. We _need_ this, guys. We need it. I know you guys can pull this off. You've all been excellent in rehearsals, and you're going to be the same way up on that stage today, okay?"

The kids stared forlornly back at us. There was nothing more Will could tell them. It was all up to them now. Most of them were leaning against each other, half of them looking like they were ready to fall right back into bed.

They looked disastrous.

"Let's get started," Will mustered a forced smile.

That was when everything started to fall apart.

He walked to the storage closet where we'd kept the costumes.

"Uh… did one of you guys move the costumes?" Will's question sent a shock through my spine as all of the kids shook their heads. He stepped back and flung the door the rest of the way open to reveal an utterly empty closet. He swore under his breath.

Most of the kids swore out loud.

"Run the numbers without them," Will shouted at me as he sprinted off down the hall, going somewhere I couldn't possibly fathom.

The pressure mounting, I grudgingly stepping into the role of leader, directing the kids to start with 'She's So High.'

It was shaky, and Brittany knocked Mercedes over twice. I stopped them when Finn forgot the lyrics halfway through. Instead of dwelling on it and making them feel worse, we moved onto the next number. Half of the kids forgot the choreography for 'My Life Would Suck Without You.'

I didn't bother running the rest of the numbers.

It was all over. It wasn't their fault… they just weren't ready.

At ten to three, Will was still nowhere to be found.

Rachel starting crying. It was the first time I'd ever seen her think of someone other than herself. It wasn't just her dreams that had been broken. It was all of them.

The clock kept ticking, and we still had no costumes.

I would have tried to motivate them, but it was no use.

They knew it and I knew it.

They could give it everything thing they had, but it wouldn't be enough.

There was no way we'd place.

Glee was over.


	46. Chapter 46

Kurt's POV

I think I must have stood there with my hand pressed against my chest for hours. We weren't just bad, we absolutely _sucked_. Nobody could remember the lyrics or the choreography. We looked like a bunch of brainless primates who had no idea what we were doing. My heart was thumping so heard I was sure everyone in the room could hear it.

Glee was _over_.

Sectionals had been a Jamaican Bobsled Team. This was just a sad, lost cause.

Mr. Schuster burst in carrying every single costume with two minutes to go. He didn't waste time telling us where he'd found them, he just rushed us into one of the group washrooms to get changed. I was the second last one finished (there is no rushing fashion!)

Finn was the last. I stood in front of a mirror liberally applying blush to my cheeks. Finn stood at the one beside it, struggling to tuck his gold shirt into his pants. I let him finish that on his own before catching his eye. I put my palette down on the edge of the sink and walking towards him.

I backed him up against one of the sinks and rested my hands on his shoulders. I was on my tiptoes, drawing myself closer and closer to him. When I was the perfect, teasing distance away I removed my hands and lowered them down to his tie. I never broke the gaze we shared as I untied it and did it up again.

He'd tied it backwards.

That's Finn Hudson for ya.

When I finished, I backed up, tightening the tie as I pulled it forward.

When I let go, he stumbled and rebounded off of the sink.

I giggled.

"Let's go, guys! Everyone out of the washrooms!" Mr. Schuster yelled from the conference room.

I turned on my heel and left, Finn following closely behind.

The rest of the club were all backed up against the walls, their arms crossed tightly across their chests, their eyes flitting back and forth. I backed myself into a corner. Finn positioned himself beside me, squeezing in between Quinn and I.

"The judges said we could wait in here until they call us," Mr. Schuster sighed dejectedly. "Just… be ready."

There was a moment of silence for our lost dream before people started talking, if only to break the heavy silence.

"Kurt? Can I maybe… uh, talk to you?" Finn inquired quietly.

"Sure." I shrugged. Things had already gone badly today. It couldn't get worse.

He backed me further into the corner, leaving Quinn leaning up against the wall.

Finn took a deep breath.

"I'm sorry about yesterday," he said, just quiet enough for no one to hear, just loud enough to actually mean something. "I've done everything I've thought of, I really have. I'll do more if you want me to. Or you can give it all back. I just wanted to say that it's okay if you don't want to be with me. Just please, please tell me now, because I don't think I can go out there and sing not knowing." He sent his eyes skyward, as if he were praying for guidance. "Please."

My wit seemed to have escaped me. Me, Kurt Hummel, could think of absolutely nothing to say.

Let me explain: I'd tried to think about it.

Finn had asked me to, Mercedes had asked me to, and the rest of the girls had asked me to on Tuesday night. I'd tried to wrap my mind around it. Decide. It seemed so simple. This was _Finn Hudson_. The boy I'd been crushing on since the ninth grade… offering me a chance.

But I just couldn't. It's not necessarily that I didn't want to… I just _couldn't_ think about it. For the past two days, every time I'd heard the word 'Finn', my brain had just shut off.

I wanted to think. I wanted to _know_.

And then here we were, ten minutes before we had to go on stage and give what was probably our last performance as a club, and all of a sudden I _knew_. It was like something had been holding me back, preventing me from considering all of the possibilities until now.

Did I want Finn?

Yes.

Was I an idiot for waiting so long to realize it was all real?

YES.

I nearly laughed at the sheer stupidity of logic.

Was this _not_ the thing I'd been waiting for since I was fourteen?

I nearly laughed, but right then, I could think of things that I would rather be doing.

I took my face in both of my hands, knowing that I didn't have to say anything to give him my answer.

We came in closer, and he gently closed his eyes.

I was about to get my first kiss. Oh my God, I was about to get my first kiss, with FINN HUDSON.

His hands were resting on my hips, and it felt oh so good.

Glee might crash and burn today on that stage, but right then, I was in _heaven_.

Nothing could possibly interrupt this moment.

At least that's what I thought, until a single voice broke through the sheer bliss I was feeling. It made us both stop cold, and jump back from each other, shocked.

"W-what?" Finn stammered, staring at Quinn.

She clutched her stomach in her right hand, balancing against the wall with her left.

"I said I think my water just broke!"


	47. Chapter 47

Finn's POV

Everything just froze. "WHAT?" I started to panic.

"Are you stupid?" Quinn squinted at me before doubling over and wincing in pain. "I said I'm _having the baby_!"

"Oh my God. Oh my God. What do we do?"

"Get me to the hospital, you dimwit!"

"Mr. Schu!" I called across the room from where he was fixing the collar of Artie's shirt.

"Yes, Finn?"

"We gotta get to the hospital! Quinn's having the baby!"

Mr. Schuster was in front of us in two seconds flat. "Oh, my God, Quinn are you okay? How are you doing?"

"I'm… fine, I guess…" her voice wavered. Rachel appeared behind Mr. Schuster.

"What in the world is going on now? We have to on in half and hour!" Rachel complained loudly. Quinn threw her a murderous glare.

"What's up?" Puck stepped in behind Rachel.

Three seconds later, the whole club was in a circle, surrounding Kurt, Quinn and I.

"Should we call an ambulance?" I feebly suggested over the alarmed banter of the crowd. Shaking himself out of a daze, Kurt took control.

"Finn," he directed, "call your Mom and tell her to get here _immediately_. Mercedes," he reached into the pocket of his pants, pulled out his phone and tossed it to her, "use the GPS to get directions to the nearest hospital. You," he looped an arm under Quinn's arm and around her back to support her. "Don't sit down, just keep moving. It'll hurt less."

"What about the competition? We've been rehearsing for months, people!" Rachel interjected.

Kurt glowered at her as he guided Quinn to the door. I dug out my cell and started dialing my Mom. She picked up on the third ring.

"Finn?" she whispered over the sound of an applauding crowd. "What's up? They're about to start!"

"Mom, Quinn's having her baby. We need you to drive her to the hospital."

Mom gasped. "I'll be there in a minute."

After she snapped the phone shut, I caught up with Quinn and Kurt, who was making her pace the room, coaching her. "Just stay calm," he said placidly. "You'll be there soon."

"How do you know all this stuff?" I asked.

Kurt rolled his eyes and shrugged. "I am a limitless pool of untapped knowledge. I don't know!"

"Oh."

Puck knocked me out of the way, shouldering past me.

"What the hell is going on?" he snapped. "The baby isn't due for forty one days!"

Quinn narrowed her eyes. "How do you know that?"

He sighed irritably, like he shouldn't have had to explain. "Look, Quinn, I know you're still pissed at me, but I _care_. She's half mine! You can't just give away our daughter!"

Quinn looked like she was about to answer, but just as she opened her mouth, she screamed and sank into Kurt, who barely looked strong enough to hold her up. By some miracle, he did.

"Shhh," he cooed. "You're okay, it's just a contraction."

"But… it… hurts!" Quinn whimpered. Kurt ran a comforting hand through her hair.

"It's okay. It'll pass. Just breathe it out."

The door banged open, and my Mom ran in, followed by Greg. I'd forgotten he was here. Ignoring me, she rushed to Quinn.

"Are you okay, honey? How far apart are the contractions?"

Quinn still had her eyes squeezed shut like she was having a nightmare.

"She just had her first one," Kurt answered for her.

"Okay," Mom whipped her car keys out of her purse, "let's not waste any time then."

"What's going on Carol?" Greg asked, although I couldn't imaging he'd be that miffed at being pulled out of an auditorium full of singing teens.

"Quinn, Greg. Greg, this is Quinn. Quinn is having a baby," she said it slowly, like she was talking to a toddler. "We're going to drive to the hospital now."

"Oh, uh… okay." I guess Greg learned early on not to mess with my Mom when she was on a mission.

Mercedes wordlessly passed Kurt's phone to my Mom.

"Let's go."

As soon as Quinn was able to stand again, Kurt helped her lope little by little down the hallway to the parking lot.

"I'll go with them." Miss Pillsbury said, rushing out into the hall behind them, leaving the room in silence.

"We can't go on now," Rachel slammed her hand against the wall. "We only have ten people! They'll disqualify us!"

"Rachel, there are more important things happening right now!" Mr. Schuster shouted at her.

Go Mr. Schu!

Puck was standing up against the wall, his head hanging in his hands. If I didn't know any better, I'd say he was crying. Obviously, I knew better.

"Dude," I addressed him. He looked up. He was _definitely_ not crying. Not at all. "Go!"

It was like he'd needed my permission all along. He gave me a teary look of thanks, which was a lot from him, considering what he'd done the past couple of weeks. He sprinted off down the hall.

The ones of us who remained all looked at each other. It was like all of us knew that after today nothing would ever be the same again.

"I guess we're not competing," mumbled Mr. Schuster. That meant we wouldn't place. Which meant Glee was _over_, for real this time.

In a move that none of us expected, Rachel whipped out her phone, dialing her Dads and asking them to come pick her up. Mercedes, Brittany, Santana, Tina, and Artie all did the same. Mr. Schuster and I would carpool with one of them. After all of the chaos of the past week, no matter how much we'd avoided each other, disrespected each other, the fact remained that we were still 'The Glee Club'. We were connected. We needed each other. And we wouldn't miss this for the world.

When the runner came in twenty minutes later to get us for our backstage prep time, the conference room was left… totally empty.


	48. Chapter 48

Rachel's POV

We were all stuck in the waiting room of the maternity ward waiting, an activity that people usually engaged in so called waiting rooms. At first I was swayed by the thought of the agents waiting in the auditorium to hear me sing. When I realized that without Quinn we'd be disqualified anyway, and that I probably wouldn't feel like singing in front of hundreds of people if I were in labor, I relented. Also, because Mr. Schuster yelled at me.

So, Glee was officially over. When Mr. Schuster got around to getting the news to Figgins, it wouldn't take him two seconds to open the doors to Alcoholics Anonymous. The one thing that was good in life, the one thing that I always had to look forward to, was gone in the blink of an eye. But just like that, something… some_one_ new was arriving. Quinn still hadn't decided if she wanted to keep her yet, but after our conversation the night before, it wouldn't have surprised me if she did.

Kurt was camped out by the nurses station, pestering them for information every five seconds. Only family had been allowed in the delivery room, so Noah had taken that right, as the real father of the baby. The rest of us were stranded here. To tell the truth (although I wouldn't admit this out loud, ever, to anyone,) I was more worried about Noah in there than I was about Quinn. Quinn was tough. I mean, look what she'd been through already! Noah pretended to be tough, but if you knew him, _really _knew him, you'd know that he wasn't tough at all. He was the most vulnerable one out of all of us.

Turns out, I was rightfully concerned.

After about three hours of waiting, two male nurses emerged from Quinn's room, carrying on a stretcher none other than Noah Puckerman.

"Who's here with Quinn FaBray?" one of them addressed the room.

Every single one of us stood up.

"Well," the same nurse said, "the father fainted when she got to six centimeters."

Mercedes snorted.

"…So she needs someone in there with her."

Instantaneously, I found myself raising my hand. I'm not sure why… I was probably the furthest thing from family Quinn had in that whole waiting room. But it just felt… right. Dad and Daddy smiled at me from their seats.

"Okay…" the nurse said, "you…" he pointed at me, "and you." He motioned to Kurt, who was jumping up and down, waving his hand in the air like a smarty-pants kid who knew the answer to an unanswerable question.

_Great_.

Another nurse gave us ugly blue hospital gowns to dress in, and led us into Quinn's delivery room. Kurt made his way in front of the bed to her right side, so I took the left.

"How're you doing, Quinn?" I asked gently.

She grunted in response. "Ouch…"

"You're doing great, Quinn." Kurt squeezed her hand tightly in both of his. "Just keep breathing."

I uncertainly did the same. I wasn't sure if she'd want to hold my hand- she seemed comfortable enough with Kurt- but she grasped it so hard that it turned white. I guess it doesn't matter whose hand you're holding when you're pushing a small human out of you.

"Good job, Quinn," I said calmly, trying to mimic Kurt's relaxing tone. She was hit by another contraction, which Kurt talked her through. I just sat there, holding her hand, feeling useless. When she fell back into the bed, breathing heavily, I glanced at Kurt over her. He was looking at me.

"I'm sorry," the words poured out of my mouth, surprising even me, "I'm sorry about telling Jacob about you and Finn. I _was_ jealous, and it was a stupid, stupid thing to do. I'm _really_ sorry."

He smiled at me. Maybe because he actually forgave me, or maybe because he just didn't want to start yelling at me over Quinn.

"You and Finn are good together," I said, as a final peace offering. It was the best I could do. After all, it did still hurt whenever I though about it.

"Thanks, Rachel. That means a lot to…"

"GUYS!" Quinn screamed from under us. She gripped my hand so hard I swear I heard my bones cracking.

"Shhh…" I said, soothingly brushing her sweat-soaked bangs back from her forehead. "Breathe. Just keep breathing."

A nurse came to check her dilation. "Nine centimeters," she informed us, "I'll go get Dr. Hardly."

She left the room and Kurt met my eyes again. "Hardly what?" we said at the same time, cracking up.

"WILL YOU GUYS JUST SHUT UP? I'M HAVING A BABY HERE!" Quinn yelled.

"Sorry," I muttered.

Over her screams and cries, I chuckled. "You've got a strong voice, Quinn. You should use it more in Glee Club." Then I remembered that there _was_ no more Glee Club.

She obliviously laughed back. "Thanks." Five seconds later, another contraction hit her, and this time I actually _did _hear bones cracking. Only they weren't mine.

"Geez, Quinn!" Kurt yelped from the other side of the room. He withdrew his hand, shoving it in between his knees and biting his bottom lip to stop from crying. But then Quinn screeched again, and, like a true hero, he held out his other hand.

A tall, black haired man in a doctor's coat came into the room, smiling cheerfully. I wanted to shout at him 'Why are you smiling? Can't you see she's in pain?' But then again, I didn't want to distract him from Quinn. He checked her again.

"Quinn, is it?" he didn't wait for an answer. "Well, Quinn, it looks like you're at ten centimeters. You're ready to go!" he knelt down in front of her and addressed Kurt and I.

"Just keep telling her to push. Don't stop, okay?"

We both nodded.

"Okay Quinn," he said in that super-calm voice that only obstetricians can posses. "Start pushing, okay? It's time for your baby to come out!"

"Okay," she said breathlessly. She gave a tremendous push that lasted for ten seconds. She collapsed back onto her pillows.

"Keep going, Quinn. Keep pushing!" Kurt and I encouraged. When I looked up at the door, I saw the whole Glee Club gathered outside the window, peering in and cheering her on.

"Just keep pushing!"

She did, for fifteen minutes, until her face was beet red and her hospital gown was drenched in sweat. Kurt and I sat beside her and cheered like insane people, not caring what anyone else thought.

Everyone always says that a baby being born is the greatest miracle of all, but I never believed them. That was probably because I'd never seen a baby being born before. It really is a miracle. After another twenty minutes of pushing and cheering and pushing and more cheering, the unmistakable sound of a newborn's cry echoed off the walls of the delivery room. It was the most beautiful sound I'd heard in my whole life. Dr. Hardly scooped up Quinn's baby girl, cut the cord, and handed her off to one of the nurses to be cleaned. Much to Kurt's relief, she let our hands drop to the bed.

Ten seconds later, a nurse came over and handed the baby back to Quinn. She clutched her daughter to her chest with one arm, brushing her matted black hair off of her forehead with the other, and laughing. I couldn't see how she could be laughing after all that, but she was.

"She's perfect," she murmured.

"She is," Kurt seconded.

"Absolutely perfect," I regarded the screaming, crying little girl, with Noah's big brown eyes and Quinn's high cheekbones.

One of the nurses opened the door to get more baby blankets, and the all of the people waiting outside the door shoved past and poured into the room, crowding the bed. Noah came to the front, crouching beside me. There were tears pouring from his eyes, and he wasn't even trying to hide it.

In the background, Dr. Hardly was talking about how she'd been born two months premature, and that was normal, but she was still very delicate.

No one was listening.

"Look," Quinn couldn't take her eyes off of her daughter. "No Mohawk!"

We all laughed. And for a second… just for a second, it didn't matter that Glee had been cancelled. It didn't matter that we'd missed the competition. All of the bad things fell away, and we were left with a beautiful baby girl. Yes, Quinn was her mother, and Noah was her father, but the truth was, she belonged to all of us. We _all_ loved her.

_Every single one of us._

"She'll be a good singer," Mr. Schuster commented from the back of the room, over the baby's screams.

We all laughed again. For once, everything was perfect. We were together, and nothing could change that. Nothing in the world.

"Um… guys?" Kurt winced from his chair beside the bed. "I think my hand is broken."

We laughed, again.

"It's not funny! It hurts!"

By that time, everyone was cracking up, even Kurt.

It felt as if a giant weight had been lifted off of all of us. Problems had been cast to the wind. All of the irrelevant facts had been stripped away. We'd been left with the bare minimum: love.


	49. Chapter 49

**Hi guys: Thanks so much for bothering to read up until this point. It's almost finished (about 12 more chapters) and just so you know THERE IS A SEQUEL... it's already been writtin, but if you want me to post it, PLEASE REVIEW!**

Artie's POV

I hate the smell of hospitals with a passion. It smells like disinfectant and old people, and God knows I'd had enough of that smell for one lifetime. When Quinn's baby was born, I finally had a good memory to connect the smell with.

All twelve Glee members, Mr. Schu, Miss Pillsbury, and Finn's Mom, along with the newest arrival, were all crammed into the small recovery room that Quinn had been quarantined to. Kurt's fractured hand had been bandaged to twice its normal size.

There was barely enough room for anyone to move, which the maternity ward nurses didn't appreciate too much. A couple of times, one of the nurses came to check on Quinn's little girl, slamming my chair up against the periwinkle walls and not even noticing. Tina was sitting on my lap, hugging the baby to her chest and cooing in her ear when another nurse walked in. This one had graying brown ringlets, a big smile, and a name tag that read 'Gillian.' She looked like nurse that was actually _supposed_ to work in a maternity ward, unlike those stern, white-haired old bittys that had been waiting on us up until now. She stayed in the doorway as opposed to fighting her way through us.

"Have you got a name for the little angel yet?" she addressed Quinn.

"Not quite yet," Quinn told her, flipping though a book of baby names with Puck by her side. "I think we're almost there, though."

"Okay," Gillian grinned. "Call me when you've got one."

She departed just as the baby started screaming in Tina's arms.

"How about Linda Blair?" Finn's Mom joked.

Tina jiggled her to try and calm her. When she had no success, we continued our system of passing her on to the next person until she settled. Mercedes took her snuggly into her arms and rocked her back and forth.

"She looks like a Drizzle, doesn't she?" Finn pried. His Mom gave him a look.

"What about Grace?" Santana suggested over the baby's cries.

Quinn arched a tired eyebrow. "Grace is nice…"

"Giselle? Ava?" Mr. Schu had to shout over the noise. I didn't realize something so tiny could be so loud.

"She doesn't seem like an Ava…" Quinn said.

"Like a what?" Puck cupped a hand around his ear.

"What? I can't hear you!"

Frustrated, Puck picked up his guitar from beside the bed. Rachel's Dads had gone back to the hotel to collect anything we wanted while we were there.

He balanced it on his knee and strummed a few gentle, familiar chords. The baby's wails were reduced to a soft whimpering. Everyone else quieted down, as well.

"_Where it began,_

_I can't begin know when_

_But that I know it's growin' strong._

_Was it the spring?_

_And spring became summer…_

_Who'd have believed you'd come along?_"

Everyone joined in along with Puck. This was my favorite thing about these people: the wonderful ability to break out in song in the middle of a hospital. Not everyone can do that, you know.

"_Hands… touching hands…_

_Reachin' out…_

_Touching me, touching you_

_Oh, sweet Caroline_

_Good times never seemed so good._

_I've been inclined to believe they never would._

_Oh, sweet Caroline…_

_Good times never seemed so good._

_Oh, I've been inclined to believe it never would_

_Oh, no, no…_

By the time we all stopped singing, the baby had stopped crying completely. She regarded us all with wide, aware brown eyes.

"You know what?" Quinn said profoundly, "I think that's just right. Caroline."

The rest of us murmured our agreement. It was a beautiful name, and it meant something to us. It made her ours.

Finn looked crushed. "But what about Drizzle?"

Gillian appeared at the door again, applauding. Behind her were several other nurses doing the same.

"That was wonderful, you guys!" she gushed. "It's not everyday we get a choir together in the maternity ward!"

"You're here for a _name_ Gillian," a bitter woman said from behind her.

"Oh yeah!" Gillian clapped her hands together. "You guys thought up a name for your sweetheart yet?"

"Yes," we confirmed in unison.

"Caroline…" Puck started.

"Drizzle…" Quinn added, smiling at Finn. Finn looked ecstatic.

"FaBray." Puck finished indefinitely.

"That's such a _pretty_ name," said Gillian.

"No," insisted Quinn. "Her name isn't Caroline Drizzle FaBray. It's Caroline Drizzle _Puckerman_-FaBray." Quinn extended a hand out to meet Puck's. They stood there by the bed, holding hands, like any normal new parents would. The pack of nurses left.

I didn't want to break the silence. There were so many questions to be asked… but nobody wanted to ask them. Much to our collective relief, Puck picked his guitar back up and played a few more tunes. The hours pressed on, and pretty soon the newly dubbed Caroline was dozing in Kurt's arms. Tina had swung her legs over the side of my hair and was resting her head on my shoulder. Me and Tina… well, we were finding our way. We'd be okay. But it wasn't us I was worried about at that moment. Thankfully, Mr. Schuster took the job of inquiring about Quinn's living arrangements.

"Quinn, who are you staying with?"

Brittany stuck a hand up. Her left one.

"I'm staying with Brittany… well, until the baby is born… which is now, I guess. Her parents didn't want a baby in the house."

She didn't seem the least bit fazed at being homeless. Just another day at the office, I guess.

"Where are you going now?"

She shrugged lightly. Everyone knew that she couldn't stay with Puck… his mother wouldn't allow it.

"Quinn, you know I feel bad about what Terri did to you. If I had known what was going on, I would have put a stop to it before anyone got hurt like they did. But that doesn't change the fact that you got screwed over." Mr. Schuster truly looked sorry. His wife was totally psycho… when she was working as the nurse I went to the nurse's office because I had a headache. Mrs. Schuster told me to get up and walk around to see if that helped.

"They can live with us," Miss Pillsbury said suddenly. Mr. Schu turned to her, stunned.

"Wha…?"

Miss P stood up from her chair in the corner, her hands crossed in front of her lithe figure.

"I said they can live with us. Until Quinn can get back on her feet, at least. That way they can have help and still be able to see Caroline. There's a daycare right next to McKinley."

Mr. Schuster looked at Miss Pillsbury, and then turned to Quinn incredulously.

"That's so nice of you guys but… Miss P, Caroline's just a baby. They throw up and poop and suck on stuff that isn't meant to be sucked on…" Quinn said deliberately.

"I can deal," Miss Pillsbury tenderly assured her. "Quinn, I really think it'd be a good idea. Where else can you stay?"

"Emma…" Will appealed softly.

She turned back to him, her arms now crossed over her chest stubbornly. "Will, I want to do this. We have room enough in the condo. We have an extra bedroom we can make into a nursery…"

It was a risky move, but Miss P probably wouldn't have pressed so hard if she hadn't known Mr. Schu was going to say yes.

Which, of course, he did.

Quinn started crying tears of joy. "I don't… know… what to say," she gulped between sniffles. She pulled Mr. Schuster into a big bear hug. The look on his face was priceless. "Thank you."

Little Caroline let out a sweet sigh from the cushion of Kurt's arms, summing up in one breathy noise the atmosphere of the room. The sky outside of the window turned an inky black, and Tina fell fast asleep on my lap.

Gillian brought some pillows in for us, understanding that none of us would want to return to our hotel, even though visiting hours were long over and the other nurses were vying for us to be kicked out. She shut the door so we could have some peace and quiet, and as I was finally drifting off, I noticed that no one had said a word about Glee being over. But then again, we were all still here, weren't we? So maybe… dare I say it… we didn't need Glee anymore. Its goal had been achieved… to bring us all together. That it had done.


	50. Chapter 50

**So, I hope you guys have been liking this... I know it's long but it's almost over, don't worry :D**

**Remember, if you want the sequel, please please please review! **

Kurt's POV

A vital word of warning to all: never, EVER sleep in skinny jeans. _Ever._ When Carrie (as I'd affectionately come to know her) woke me with a hungry cry at five in the morning on Friday, I could barely walk. Hence my advice: sleeping in skinny jeans is a big no-no. Also, it's most likely a good idea not to break your hand. That also hurts. Oh, and sleeping with a newborn in your good arm all night long takes more strength than you'd think. Trust me.

Everyone was still slumped up against each other, sleeping, so I whisked Carrie out of the room to warrant the others more sleep than the four hours I'd gotten. Gillian was perched and perky at the front desk already.

"Kurt!" she whisper-yelled. She'd come to know us all by name since her shift started last night. "How is she?"

"I think she's hungry," I said softly, adjusting her pink flannel blanket. "Quinn isn't up yet, so I figured I'd bring her out here."

Gillian made her way around the admission counter and took Carrie from me.

"Aww… how's our Sweet Caroline doing, huh? You hungry, honey?" she used her free hand to grab a small bottle of infant formula from a bottle warmer. She propped Carrie up in her arms and touched her lips with the tip of the bottle. She took it in her tiny mouth and started sucking eagerly.

"How about you, sweetheart?" she turned to me. "You want some breakfast? I've got muffins, or coffee…"

"Nah, I'm fine," I refused. I was too overwhelmed to eat anyway, after everything that had happened yesterday. I hadn't talked to Finn since our almost-kiss, Rachel was suddenly being pleasant to me, and the long awaited bundle of joy had arrived. Speaking of the bundle of joy, she had finished her bottle in record time. Gillian took a seat in the waiting room to burp Carrie, and motioned for me sit next to her.

"So… do you all live here, or what?" Gillian inquired over Carrie's shoulder.

"No," I crossed my legs and placed my hands over my knee, "we're a Glee Club from Lima, and we _were _here for the Regional Ohio Choir competition, but we kind of got… detoured."

Gillian laughed. "The best things in life happen unexpectedly, huh?"

"Yeah," I relaxed back in my seat. "I suppose they do."

"Things weren't always this nice between you guys, I'm guessing," Gillian said knowingly.

I chuckled. "You don't know the half of it. Two weeks ago none of us were even _talking_ to each other. Now…" I gestured wordlessly to Carrie.

"Well, as they say '_Love changes everything…_'" she sang a line from an old 80s classic I couldn't place. Finn would know what it was. She had a surprisingly nice voice.

"Sure does."

Carrie let out a whimper, and Gillian offered her out to me. "Wanna go see your uncle Kurt? Here you go…"

I gently took her up onto my shoulder, where she wiggled with all of her newborn strength.

I rubbed her back in slow circles as Gillian looked my up and down, arching an eyebrow.

"So, you got a boyfriend, Kurt?"

I did a double take. "Wait… how did you know?"

"How did I know what? That you were gay?"

"Yes!"

Gillian smiled. "I have a finely tuned gaydar. Plus, not every boy could pull of a pair of skinny jeans like you do, Kurt."

I wasn't sure if I should take that as a compliment or not.

"Um… thanks?"

"So… do you? Have a boyfriend?"

"Well… kind of…" I said. "He's not my boyfriend. I don't really know what he is…"

Gillian leaned forward like a gossip-hungry teenage girl. "Ooh! Give me _all_ the juicy details."

Gillian was one of those people who you instantly like. Some people are just easy to talk to, and Gillian was one of them. That was probably why I poured out my whole story to her: my Mom's assurance of love at first sight, my long-time crush on Finn, the song in Glee, the secret admirer, the Wicked tickets, the almost-kiss in the conference room. When I'd finished she leaned back in her seat thoughtfully.

"That's a real pickle you've got yourself in, Kurt."

Carrie squirmed and I transferred her to a cradle-hold. "Any advice?"

"I say go for it," Gillian clapped me on the back. "If you blow this off, you'll be left wondering for the rest of your life if he really _was_ the one. You'll never have a chance at happiness if you don't _risk_ happiness first. Have fun while you're young Kurt! I sure wish I had," she rolled her eyes in reminiscence.

Heaving a sigh, Gillian stood up and wiped her hands on her purple teddy bear scrubs.

"Well, I should be getting home," she said dismissively. "But I'll see all of you later, okay? My next shift starts at three this afternoon."

I quickly calculated the hours in my head.

"Wait… wouldn't that mean you work eighteen hour shifts?"

Gillian gave me an enigmatic half-smile. "Only crazy people work eighteen hour shifts, Kurt. I stayed for you guys. I wanted to make sure you'd all be all right, what with those hard old women that call themselves nurses here! Well, I'll see you at three."

She waved at me as she left the ward, her advice on Finn still ringing loud and clear in my ears.


	51. Chapter 51

**~~~ Thanks so much for reading! ~~~**

**If you want me to post the sequel, review. 3**

Will's POV

After we'd eaten a lunch of… _delightful…_ hospital cafeteria food, Mercedes, Kurt, Brittany, Artie, Santana, Tina and Emma left for the mall to shop for baby clothes, and Puck, Finn, Matt, Mike and Finn's mother, Carol went back to the hotel to pay for an extra two nights on the school's credit. If there was anything that would make it _more_ likely for Figgins to cancel Glee, _that_ would be it.

I'd stayed behind in Quinn's hospital room, which she'd been restricted to until the next day. She slept restlessly in the railed bed while I held Caroline. As much as I tried to block the thought, I couldn't help but take notice of the fact that if things had gone differently, I could have been holding this baby girl and thinking that she was mine.

I guess I still wasn't sure about Emma's idea to have Quinn live with us until she was old enough to declare financial freedom from her parents. I mean, I would do anything for Emma, and I would do anything for my students, so I couldn't see what was holding me back.

Caroline squawked in my arms, and Gillian's chipper face was instantly in the doorway. She reminded me of my Mom, without the drunk part.

"Hi Will! Do you need anything? I came back in early to see if I could be of any help," she plopped herself down in one of the many chairs that had been pushed around the proximity of the room.

"I think she's fine," I reckoned. I was glad to see that all of the parenting books I'd read when Terri was 'pregnant' were finally going to good use.

"Can I hold her?" Gillian asked keenly, like an older sibling yearning to hold her new baby brother or sister.

"Sure," I transferred Caroline over to Gillian's ready arms. Some people just never get tired of being around babies, I suppose. Despite myself, I slumped back into my chair and let out a drawn out sigh. A _lot_ had happened over the past few days.

"You wanna get something off your chest, honey? I'm a good listener, you know," she addressed me while offering out her pinkie finger for Caroline to grasp in her little hand.

I chuckled and rested my hands on my knees. "Where do I start?"

"Start at the beginning," Gillian suggested warmly.

So I did. I spilled it all: Terri's fake pregnancy and our quick and dirty divorce, moving in with Emma, the failed referendum of placing at Regionals, Emma's proposed living arrangement for Quinn. All of it.

"I do want to help Quinn out," I explained, "and so does Emma…" I broke off, wanting for her to finish my sentence like a well-trained psychiatrist.

"You just don't see Quinn and Caroline as a part of your future with Emma," she filled in.

"Exactly!" I leapt up from my chair, an epiphany on the tip of my tongue.

"But you've imagined a future with Emma? You love her, right?"

"Yes, yes, yes…" I said, snapping my fingers and trying to will the words that were plaguing my mind out of my mouth

"Do you think you're reluctant because the home that you would be sharing is too small?"

"No…"

"Are you worried about Emma's OCD acting up with an infant around?" Gillian threw out suggestions.

"No, actually, she's gotten a lot better at controlling it in the past few months."

"Perhaps your jobs would interfere?"

"THAT'S IT!" I burst out, clapping my hands so loudly that Caroline startled. "Oops, sorry."

"What, the jobs? Do you think it's an issue with Quinn being a student at your school?"

"No, no, no! It's not the jobs! It has nothing to do with the jobs!"

"Well, what is it then?" Gillian cocked her head to the side.

"I want to ask her to marry me! I want to propose to her!"

Gillian raised both of her eyebrows in unison, looking at me like I had three heads. "Ooookaaay…. Not _exactly_ where I was going with that… Will, do you really think that's such a good idea? I mean, you just got a divorce…" she said warily, cuddling Caroline on her knee.

"Exactly," I pressed. "Do you think I would be doing this if I didn't know I wanted to? Terri was _psycho_… Emma isn't! I know it sounds absurd… it sounds crazy to me too! I just… I love Emma. I want to do this!"

Gillian stood and crossed the room to Carrie's hospital issue crib. She laid her in, making sure she was wrapped tightly in her blankets.

"Now, don't go making rash decisions here Will. I always told my boys not to do anything they thought up on less than eight hours of sleep. God knows they didn't listen to a word I said! Nonetheless, I _do_ think you and Emma are sweet together…"

"So is that a yes?"

"Why are you asking my permission?" she laughed heartily. "I'm not your mother, although I'm probably old enough to be! I'm just here to give advice to people who need me. But back to the first issue… what does that have to do with you not wanting Quinn and Caroline to move in with you?"

I shrugged. "I _do _want them to. I don't know… I guess I just think that having them around might get in the way if Emma and I ever wanted to start a family of our own."

"Mr. Schuster, I promise we would _never_ get in the way," came a voice from the corner. Gillian and I both whirled around to face Quinn.

"I swear, Mr. Schu, you wouldn't even know we're there. Really." She held a hand over her heart to seal the pledge.

"Quinn? How much did you hear?" I stammered.

She waggled her eyebrows. "Enough," she smiled vaguely.

"Well," Gillian clasped her hands together. "I suppose that takes care of that, then! Any more worries, you two?"

I shook my head, dumbfounded.

"Nope," Quinn beamed, "but I do have some ideas for your proposal, Mr. Schu…"

Gillian chortled and exited the room, but not before calling back in 'Good luck with everything, Will!' and giving me a shrewd, punctuating wink.


	52. Chapter 52

**~~~ Thanks so much for reading! ~~~**

**If you want me to post the sequel, review. 3**

Mercedes's POV

"_The hills are alive, with the sound of music!_"

Annoyed, I grabbed the remote off of the bedside table and pressed pause. Tina and Rachel both shot me death glares through the dark of the hotel room.

"Mercedes!" Kurt whined. "That was just getting good!"

"Okay, we both know that you've seen this movie too many times for it to be _just _getting good," I protested, rolling my eyes. "Besides, this is _my_ room, and I can kick your butts out if I want to!"

"But why are you kicking us out?" Tina asked.

"I'm not kicking you guys out. _You_ can stay," I said to Tina and Rachel. "It's _you_ I have the problem with." I pointed the remote at Kurt like we were in the middle of a Western shootout.

"What did I do this time!" he complained. "I bring my very own copy of Sound of Music down here for you guys and _this_ is the thanks I get?"

"Look," I laid down the line, "I know y'all are cranky because the nurses kicked us out for the night, but _really _Kurt… have you even talked to him since Thursday?"

"Talked to who?" he said feigningly.

"You know exactly who and _what_ I'm talking about here, mister. Don't think just 'cause I didn't mention it right away that I didn't see what _almost_ happened between you two in that conference room. And don't think that I'll hesitate to hold your beloved Sound of Music hostage if you don't haul your cookies down to his room and talk to him about it right now!"

Kurt executed a perfect eye roll. "Mercedes, please… I know you're trying to help, but this is _my_ life, and I will talk to Finn when I feel like it. But right now I feel like watching Sound of Music, and by some mistake yours happened to be the only room with a DVD player." He made a lunge for the remote, but I pulled away at the last second and he landed on the bed.

"Nope, you have to choose: Finn or no Sound of Music."

Rachel nodded supportively. "I think you should talk to him, Kurt. I wouldn't wait. He's probably waiting for you to come to him. It can't hurt, can it?"

Kurt glared first at me, then at Rachel. "I. Said. No."

_Knock, knock, knock._

"I'll get it!" Tina called, eager to escape Kurt's Look of Death before it reached her.

I flicked the bedside lamp on so we could all see who was at the door.

Tina unlocked both safety locks and pulled it open to reveal an… energized… Artie.

"Hey guys!"

"Um…hi?" I said slowly. I sensed Vitamin D in the air again.

"You'll never guess what's happening!"

"Probably not," Tina laughed sarcastically.

"Mr. Schu went out shopping or something, and he told Finn's Mom it was reeeeeally important and he wouldn't be back until reeeeeally late, and then Finn's Mom told Finn and then Finn's Mom left with Miss. Pillsbury and they have this huge suite and they have like, a pool table and karaoke and stuff and everybody's up there 'cause they're gone and they're… like… somewhere, and Finn's Mom, so yeah, and there's beer 'cause Puck brought beer, and everyone is drinking beer and everyone's up there and it's like this giant birthday party and Adam Lambert. And stuff. So… yeah."

"That made tons of sense, Artie," I giggled.

"I'm guessing _you've_ also been drinking the beer?" Kurt scoffed and sat up on the bed.

Artie nodded ecstatically.

"Wait…" I clued in. "Did you say _everyone_ was there? As in… _Finn_ everyone?"

"Yup." Artie drummed his hands of the armrests of his chair. "Everyone. 'Cept for Finn's Mom and Miss P and Mr. Schu and Quinn and Caroline."

"Oh, God." Kurt pulled a pillow down from the top of my bed and buried his face in it.

I quickly did the math in my head: Finn + karaoke + beer + Kurt = FINALLY!

I grabbed his hand and tugged him off of the bed forcefully. Tina and Rachel followed.

"At least let me change first!" Kurt pleaded. I sighed and let him go. He rushed across the hall and was out again in two minutes, wearing a royal purple scoop neck sweater and a pair of black leather pants.

"Kurt, why exactly are you wearing leather pants?" Rachel asked.

Kurt shrugged nonchalantly. "Everyone needs at least one pair of leather pants. _Please _Rach, tell me you did not just ask that question! You seriously need another makeover."

"Ooookaaay… we're going now." I said insistently.

I followed Artie, who was doing figure 8's down the hall, dragging a defiant Kurt behind me.

"Lead the way, crazy drunk person!"


	53. Chapter 53

**~~~ Thanks so much for reading! ~~~**

**If you want me to post the sequel, review. 3**

Kurt's POV

It was true, what I'd said to Rachel: everybody _does_ need at least one good pair of leather pants. But the real reason I'd worn them is because I couldn't find anything else that wouldn't clash terribly with the yellow-white of my hospital issue bandages that were wrapped around my hand

Okay, you know what? Screw this.

To all those interested in knowing: the REAL reason I wore my best pair of leather pants is because I looked good in them, and I WANTED TO IMPRESS FINN.

There. I said it. Nothing wrong with that, is there?

Besides, I don't even _know_ you people! Why do I care what you think?

Anywho…

Mr. Schuster's suite was at the end of the floor 6 hallway. As the five of us approached the door, we could feel the steady pounding base beat of pop music through the floor.

"Heeeeeeere we are!" Artie chimed as Tina stepped in front of him and opened the door. We were all instantly hit with a sound level and vigor that could only be attributed to one thing: teenagers, booze, and karaoke. People were spread out over couches, chairs, and the king sized bed that was the center piece of the elegant room. Someone had pushed a coffee table up in front of the karaoke machine as a makeshift stage, using two dining chairs as wings. Mike and Matt were on the coffee table, jumping up and down and singing Adam Lambert's 'Sure Fire Winners.' The table creaked and wobbled under their weight, and I began to have doubts that that particular piece of furniture would survive the night.

I spotted Finn sitting in a plushy looking armchair, watching the performance, and otherwise glancing around the room every few seconds, like he was looking for someone. I was tempted to go over and say hello, but I noticed that Artie had grabbed another bottle of beer from the cooler and pried it open. He looked at it and licked his lips, but I grabbed it from him with my good hand before he could get it to his mouth.

"No way, mister. No more for you," the cool perspiration from the bottle slid down my skin in perfect droplets.

Artie pouted up at me. "Dat's not faaaair!"

I raised an eyebrow at him. "You are _drunk_, Artie. How many have you had tonight?"

"Four, five, six…" he held up a hand and counted 1, 2, 3 fingers. "Seventeen billion and a hundred!"

I shook my head and turned to Tina. "Make sure he doesn't have anymore, okay?" She nodded and took her place behind Artie's wheelchair to wheel him to any place further away from anything with a high alcohol content.

I looked at Finn, and then back at Mercedes, who smiled and motioned for me to get going.

I cautiously made my way through the throng. When I got to Finn's chair, he saw me and his eyes lit up. I'm no expert, but I'm guessing that's a good sign. I hopped up on the side arm of the chair, pushing myself back and making sure that my legs hung over the edge. I tried not to get hung up on the fact that Finn was practically licking them with his eyes. Thank goodness I'd been bestowed with the blessing of long legs. The tight leather pants didn't hurt, either.

"Hi," I gulped. Just because I looked good didn't mean I wasn't nervous! Geez, what do you people take me for?

"Hey," he said back, awkwardly diverting his eyes to the coffee table stage like I'd just caught him staring. Which, of course, I had. Looking down, I noticed that I still had Artie's beer in my hand. Just for something to do, I raised it to my lips and took a sip. Why can't I ever think about things before I do them?

I sputtered and coughed, scrunched my face up, and forced myself to swallow. Finn was watching me and laughing.

"This stuff is _disgusting_," I grimaced, "You want it?"

"Nah," Finn took it anyway and placed it on the ground beside the chair. "Mr. Schuster will probably kill us when he finds out we had a party in here. It's fun though," he glanced at the couch, where Puck and Rachel were making out. He made a face. "Um… I mean… Brittany had an Adam Lambert karaoke CD, so she brought it up. That's the only one we have though."

Mike and Matt had left the stage, and someone had lifted Artie's chair up onto the coffee table (now _that_ looked safe…) and he was singing 'Strut,' which had the ironic hook:

"_I wanna start a revolution,_

_A type of personal solution,_

_I wanna see you strut, strut… strut,_

_C'mon, _walk_ for me…_"

Oh, Artie.

Finn and I watched appreciatively. Drunken people _are_ good entertainment. Soon, Artie finished and the 'stage' was left empty.

"You should go up there," Finn persuaded, grinning at me.

"Why?" I asked, shifting uncomfortably. Truth be told, I'd have been happy just sitting there all night.

"Because," he shrugged, "It would be fun. And I love hearing you sing."

I pretty nearly melted into the seat.

"Okay," I bargained, "but only if you sing something after." I held out my pinkie finger (the one that wasn't being held in place by several layers of gauze) for a pinkie swear. "Promise?"

"Promise."

He linked his pinkie around mine and squeezed.

I left my cozy perch and made my way to the front of the room. I selected my song on the karaoke machine, and climbed onto the coffee table, where the karaoke mic was positioned. Frankly, I felt ridiculous standing on a coffee table in front of a room full of people, but Finn was smiling, and so I endured.

I waited the eight and a half bars of rest before coming in:

"_I want your body, mind, soul, et cetera_

_And one day you'll see you should give it to me_

_And I don't want anyone instead of ya_

_Oh, babe I'm going crazy, c'mon and give it to me_

_And I ain't never met nobody better, _

_You're someone else's, baby._

_I'm so sick of livin' for other people_

_Took meeting you to realize_

_I don't wanna lose ya, I wanna keep ya_

_So put your little hand in my and look in to my eyes, baby eyes._

_Oh, you make me wanna listen to music again._

_Yeah, you make me wanna listen to music again._"

People had started to stop what they'd been doing to watch me. Even though I hadn't had more than that one revolting sip of beer, I still felt loose and wild and free. Mercedes, Brit, Santana and Finn were clapping along, Finn throwing sweet and somewhat

evocative smiles my way. I shook my hips so much, my mama woulda been proud.

"_There had been many moons before I met you_

_And I don't know when _

_And now you're giving me back my raison d'être_

_And I'm inspired again._"

I gave Finn a flirty wink, but when I noticed Puck watching I decided not to do anything too risqué, just in case the dumpster was full next Monday.

"_And I know in some ways, you're kind of evil_

_I've got my roots and you've got ties_

_But my heart's no stranger to upheaval_

_Put your little hand in mine and look into my eyes, baby eyes!_

_Oh, you make me wanna listen to music again._

_Yeah, you make me wanna listen to music again._"

It was fun: being up on the stage… I mean, the coffee table, in a whole different town, being happy and knowing that the boy of your dreams _wanted_ you. It was simply breathtaking. Okay, maybe the pants were cutting off my circulation a bit. Either way…

"_I'm so sick of livin' for other people_

_Took meeting you to realize_

_I don't wanna lose ya, I wanna keep ya_

_So put your little hand in my and look in to my eyes, baby eyes!_

_Whoa, oh whoa… oh, you make me wanna listen to music again._

_Whoa, oh whoa… yeah, you make me wanna listen to music again._

_Whoa, oh whoa… oh, you make me wanna listen to music again, yeah._

_Whoa, oh whoa… yeah, you make me wanna listen to music again."_

I made my finish my jumping off of the coffee table with the mic like Bon Jovi on steroids. I slid on my knees and landed in front of Finn. I held the mic up to him.

"You owe me a song, Mr. Hudson."


	54. Chapter 54

**~~~ Thanks so much for reading! ~~~**

**If you want me to post the sequel, review. 3**

Rachel's POV

Noah had me pinned down on the couch in Mr. Schu's suite. He was kissing me roughly, and my skin was burning wherever he touched it. He'd somehow smuggled beer into the party, and he'd had more than his fair share of it. Then again, I was kissing back, so I suppose he wasn't the only one to blame. So much had happened that when he cornered me on the couch, I didn't have the heart to say no.

He hadn't gone back to Quinn yet, but I knew it was only a matter of time. He'd been doting on his Sweet Caroline endlessly since she'd been born; I guess he just hadn't had time to think of anything else. He seemed very relieved that Quinn had decided to keep her and move in with Mr. Schuster. As for me?... I was just the drunken mistake.

I was just getting the hang of things, turning on the autopilot, when Noah pulled away from me. His arms were on either side of me, holding his torso up so he could look me in the eyes.

"What?" I asked, tugging the collar of his shirt back down. Why waste a good opportunity when I knew he wouldn't be able to remember most of it in the morning? It's not like any other boy (except Jacob… ew…) would ever come near me.

"I can't do this when I know you're thinking about Finn, Rachel!" he surprised me with his show of emotion. He looked genuinely hurt.

I scoffed. It seemed cold, but then I remembered all of the times I'd been slushied by him, and didn't care. "So what if I'm thinking about Finn? _You're_ thinking about Quinn!"

He looked shocked at my accusation. He pulled himself off of me and balled his hands up into fists.

"I was thinking about _you_, Rach! What will it take to prove that to you? What do you want me to do?"

I tucked my knees under me and wrapped my arms around myself, trying to regain some of the heat I'd lost when Noah sat up.

"What's there to prove?" I rolled my eyes. "You don't care about me. Once this night is over you'll probably never lay eyes on me again. You'll go back to Quinn and everything will go back to normal."

He exhaled in frustration. "I don't love Quinn, Rachel! Yes, I love Caroline, but I never _loved_ Quinn!"

"Oh, well, how nice for you," I said sarcastically.

"God Rachel, won't you just give me a chance!"

"I gave you a chance!"

You broke up with me!"

"For a good reason," I explained with a shrug. "You said it yourself… we were never friends, we had nothing in common, and football was driving a wedge between us. But none of that matters now. That's over."

"What if I don't want it to be?" Noah made a move to reach for my hand, but changed his mind in midmotion. Instead, he stood and advanced towards the stage. He stepped up to the mic, having selected his song.

"This is _so_ gay," he muttered, and the microphone projected it across the room. Kurt shot him a deadly look. Much to our collective relief, Kurt and Noah had warmed up to each other, after all Kurt had done for Quinn and Caroline.

"Oops… sorry…" Noah saluted Kurt who was sitting and pestering Finn about something.

A slow, jazzy beat heavily layered with trumpets started playing. It didn't seem like the kind of song Noah would sing at all.

"_People say I'm the life of the party_

'_Cause I make a joke or two_

_Although I might be laughin' loud and hard, yeah_

_Deep inside I am blue._

_So take a good look at my face,_

_You'll see my smile looks out of place_

_If you look closer it's easy to trace_

_The tracks of my tears. _

_I need you,_

_Need you._

_Outside I'm masquerading _

_Inside my hope is fading_

_Just a clown, since you're pulling' me down_

_My smile is my makeup I wear since my breakup with you._

_So take a good look at my face,_

_You'll see my smile looks out of place_

_If you look closer it's easy to trace_

_The tracks of my tears. _

_I need you,_

_Need you, oh…_

I let him get through the song without any reaction on my part. Thank goodness for community theatre. I sat stiffly on the couch with my hands tucked in my lap, trying to project the appearance of not caring. For a second I couldn't even think about Finn. My mind was hit by a flood of 'Noah, Noah, Noah's. He graced me with that pretty boy smile of his as he took a seat beside me, closer than I could probably have handled if it hadn't been for the loud music and all of the other distractions.

"Well?" he tilted his head to the side. There were no words to describe how much I wanted to run my hands through that Mohawk right then…

Okay, stop. STOP. Pay attention!

"It was a nice song," I said stingily.

He licked his lips. "I meant the meaning."

"Oh? I didn't really pick up on any…"

"Don't give me that crap, Berry. Nobody understands song meanings better than you."

Well, he had me there. I sighed. It was time to face this head on.

"Noah," I laid my hand gently on his, "although I have no idea why you're interested in me, I know that you are. And in the spirit of understanding and honesty, I have to tell you that I might… feel the same way about you."

His eyes glimmered with hope, and for an instant the dumpster-tossing, slushie-soaking bully was gone.

"But," I carried on, "I think we both know that there's too much at stake right now to begin a relationship. However, if you wanted to… maybe we could be… friends?"

His face fell, obviously unpleased with the compromise. I could see his inner struggle, but after a moment he placed his opposite hand atop mine.

"Friends," he smiled. He leaned forward and chastely kissed me on the cheek before sitting back to watch Finn, who was taking the stage. When I was sure he wasn't looking, I glanced over at Noah's perfectly sculpted features and grinned despite myself.

Friends, yes.

But we'd get there someday.


	55. Chapter 55

**~~~ Thanks so much for reading! ~~~**

**If you want me to post the sequel, review. 3**

Kurt's POV

Once Puck had finished his heartfelt serenade of Rachel, and Finn had run out of excuses not to be up on the coffee table/stage, I finally got my song. I usurped Finn's armchair, which was still delightfully warm, and the girls gathered around behind to watch with me. Finn had had one beer before I'd arrived, as I'd learned from Matt and Mike. He wasn't as… er, _eccentric_ as he'd been on Terri's vitamin supplement, but he was certainly getting there.

He fiddled with the karaoke machine remote, choosing his song. Adam Lambert was one of the things I'd introduced him to, back when we'd first become friends, if only to prove to him that good music had in fact been written after the 80s. I'd already performed his favorite song, 'Music Again' which left me wondering what song he would pick. I didn't have to wait long, as soon as synthetic chord was strung out in the air, accompanied by whip-like drum beats. I recognized it immediately and mentally prepared myself for what was to come. Things were about to heat up…

"_So hot, out the box_

_Can we pick up the pace?_

_Turn it up, heat it up_

_I need to be entertained._

_Push the limit, are you with it?_

_Baby, don't be afraid…_

_I'ma hurt ya real good, baby._

_Let's go, it's my show_

_Baby, do what I say_

_Don't trip off the glitz_

_That I'm gonna display_

_Hot soulja, gonna hold ya down until your am-ay-azed_

_Give it to ya till you're screamin' my name…_"

Brittany wolf-whistled jokingly from behind me. I could feel my cheeks burning, probably a bright cherry red, product of Finn's newfound skills in dancing. He may not have been adept at the Glee choreography, but _boy_, he could do the pelvic thrust better than the King himself. He smiled a wicked, playful, innocent smile right at me, and I fanned my face with my good hand.

"_No escaping' when I start_

_Once I'm in I own your heart._

_There's no way you'll ring the alarm,_

_So hold on until it's over!_

_Oh, do you know what you got into?_

_Can you handle what I'm 'bout to do?_

_Cuz it's about to get rough for you_

_I'm here for your entertainment._"

The table all but sagged under his weight, and he was moving in a way reminiscent of the song's music video, which had me utterly wrapped around his little finger already. Mercedes was looking at me and laughing. That's how submissive I must have looked.

"_Oh, I bet you thought that I was soft and sweet_

_You thought an angel swept you off your feet_

_Well, I'm about to turn up the heat_

_I'm here for your entertainment._"

But how could I help it? This was Finn, one of my favorite songs, and very… erm… _suggestive_ dance moves. Who wouldn't be getting excited?

"_It's all right, you'll be fine,_

_Baby, I'm in control_

_Take the pain, take the pleasure,_

_I'm the master of both_

_Close your eyes, not your mind_

_Let me into your soul,_

_I'ma work ya till you're totally blown!_"

Finn jumped off the edge of the stage and began to strut towards my chair. I think my eyes must have been bugging out of my head, because Mercedes started giggling ever harder. Finn held out a hand to me, the mic in his other hand. I grabbed it with my unbandaged hand and he tugged me up off of the chair, turning back and guiding me towards the stage. We both leapt up and he resumed singing, pulling me close and keeping with his previous dance repertoire. People were cheering and yelling out cat-calls, and every part of my body was flushing a deep red.

"_Oh, do you like what you see?_

_Oh, let me entertain ya till you scream!_

_Oh, do you know what you got into?_

_Can you handle what I'm 'bout to do?_

_Cuz it's about to get rough for you_

_I'm here for your entertainment._"

So much for not being risqué. Oh, whatever. I was too dazed to even care what Puck or anyone else thought. He ended the song with his hips pressed against mine, his arm around my waist. As the synthesizer faded out, he slid the mic back into its stand so he had both hands free. All of the times that I'd almost gotten my first kiss replayed in my mind, and I decided not to waste a good opportunity, even with all of these people watching. I placed my right hand on the back of his neck, my eyes flitting back and forth on his. I felt his arm muscles ripple on my lower back as he gingerly pulled me closer, pulled me up so that I was close enough. We were millimeters away, so close that I could already taste him...

The spell was broken in an instant when the suite's door slammed open. Everyone in the room whirled around to face the door. Mike and Matt conspicuously shoved the beer cooler under the bed. Mr. Schuster, Miss Pillsbury, Carol, and Greg were all standing, astonished, in the doorway. Finn didn't remove his arm from my waist, so I didn't dare move either.

"What's going on?" Miss Pillsbury said breathily, eyeing our guilty faces. Nobody answered, but rather we all looked at each other, wondering who should be the one to 'fess up. Carol shouldered her way past the two teachers, Greg following her like a lost puppy dog.

"Finn?" she saw us and stopped in her tracks. "Kurt?"

Finn opened and closed his mouth, trying to find the words.

"What's going on here?" Greg repeated the question, sounding more angry than curious. Finn finally had the sense to let go of me, and I stumbled backwards.

"Finn?" Carol said again, her eyebrows knitted together on her forehead. Tears started sprouting from Finn's eyes, and I could understand why. Not the _best_ way for your parents to find out.

"I'm sorry, Mom," he managed. A look of recognition flickered in Carol's eyes, as if she had finally figured out what was really going on. Unfortunately, the same understanding had dawned on Greg. Greg: All-American, politician, and as I'd just prophetically realized: completely homophobic.

As he stormed towards us, I knew that Carol's perfect little Finny wouldn't be the one taking the blame for this.

"You!" he was roughly the same height standing on the floor as I was on the coffee table. Once again, I felt incredibly stupid even being on a _coffee table_ in the first place.

"How could you! Going around seducing poor, innocent boys like Finn!"

I raised my eyebrows in disbelief. Me seduce _Finn_?

"What did he ever do to you?" he continued. I sucked my breath in, but he wasn't planning on giving me a chance to answer. Carol had stepped up and placed a worried, restraining hand on his shoulder, but he'd shrugged it off.

"Leave him alone!" Finn cried.

"You shut up!" Greg snarled. "You don't know what you're talking about!" I wondered if Carol had known she was dating this kind of a man. He seemed to have no self-control at all.

"This is why we shouldn't have to live with, disgusting, worthless _faggots_ like you!" his words stung more than I thought they would. I'd been called names by tons of high school gorillas, but never by a respected adult.

Everything and everyone froze, horrified. I never saw it coming when he hit me. It knocked the wind out of me, and before I knew it I had crumpled on to the coffee table, my head hitting one of the winging chairs with a sickening crack. Starts shot out before my eyes, and all of a sudden everyone was screaming and shouting, at who I didn't know. Finn was no longer on the coffee table, and I could hear people crying and yelling. A strong pair of arms came and scooped me up. Later, I realized they were Puck's. Puck brought me out of the room, away from the fighting and the shouting and from Greg. He laid me down on a bed in a dark room. I couldn't tell if it was my room or not.

"You okay?" he asked. I could only hold my head and moan.

"Okay," he said. "I'll be back, after I go beat the crap outta that guy." He left the room and sprinted back down the hall.

And even through all of my hurt, emotional and physical, that statement gave me hope.


	56. Chapter 56

**~~~ Thanks so much for reading! ~~~**

**If you want me to post the sequel, review. 3**

Kurt's POV

I waited alone in the room for half an hour at the least. Puck came back and brought me Advil and the assurance that Greg wouldn't be able to walk in the morning. I didn't even want to know what had gone down after I'd been whisked away. Mr. Schuster came in to apologize for what had happened. I'm not sure why he felt it was his fault… some people just can't control themselves. To tell the truth, what had happened with Greg was no worse than anything that had happened to me before. It had just surprised me. He'd seemed so nice at the dinner I'd been at. Mr. Schuster didn't mention anything about his trashed suite or the beer that had surely been found under the bed.

Finally, Carol and Finn showed up. Finn still looked incredibly mad, and Carol was crying.

"Kurt, I'm so sorry," her voice was heavy with tears. "I had no idea… I… I broke up with him on the spot, if that makes you feel any better," she chuckled sadly.

It didn't make me feel better, it made me feel at fault. No matter how horrible Greg had been, he and Carol had been good together. Now, thanks to me, it was over. I did feel worthless, just as he'd said. My head was still throbbing and I could feel my own hot tears falling on my cheeks.

"Oh, honey," Carol said with a motherly concern that I hadn't felt since I was five, "None of this is your fault. _None _of it, so don't let him get into your head for a second. He's nothing but a prejudiced loser." Carol came over and sat on the bed. She enveloped me in a hug, my head resting against her pillowy chest.

"Why'd you dump him?" I asked, feeling like a loser myself.

"Because, you were more family than he ever was, Kurt. Don't you forget that, okay?"

I had to smile through my tears. "Okay."

"You try to get some rest, Kurt," Carol said, getting up and heading towards the doorway. She gave Finn a hug on her way out, leaving Finn and I alone in the room. Without a word, he came and lay down on the other side of the bed. I couldn't see his face, but I could hear his voice.

"He was just upset because he couldn't get back to work on time," Finn said unsurely.

"There's no use in making up excuses for people like him, Finn." I spoke from experience. "They are the way they are. They don't understand why people like me… and you, are the way _we_ are."

"But that's no reason to treat someone like that! He hurt you, Kurt! You didn't do _anything_ wrong!"

"Shhh…" I calmly took his hand in mine. "It happens," I said. "Things like that happen to people like us and no, it isn't fair. But you've got to learn to live with it if you're going to survive."

"Nobody should have to live with that."

I took a deep breath. "Then why are you doing this? If we're together, there's no telling what those stupid gorillas on the football team will do to you. You could get hurt worse than I did, Finn."

"I know."

"So why are you…?"

"Because you're worth it."

Thankfully, Finn knew that tonight, we wouldn't get any further than that. We had each other, we had the rest of the Glee kids, and we had baby Caroline.

And for that one night, it felt like all we would ever need.


	57. Chapter 57

Burt's POV

I got up early on Saturday morning. Kurt had called and told me that that Quinn girl had had her baby, and that they'd be staying in Toledo for two extra days until she was discharged. He'd also told me that he'd maxed out his credit cards on baby clothes, but that's beside the point.

I couldn't wait to tell him any longer. I was going to tell him on Friday night when he got home, maybe cook a nice dinner or something. I could have still done that on Sunday night, but I didn't want to wait another day. He'd told me that they didn't win that Regionals singing thingy, so I figured he might have needed pick me up anyway.

"He's going to be so happy, Jamie," I said to the empty house as I poured my coffee and picked up the phone.


	58. Chapter 58

Kurt's POV

I was jolted awake on Saturday morning by the ringing of my cell phone: a plain, nondescript ringtone: my Dad. As I fished my phone out of my pocket, hoping it wouldn't wake Finn, I realized something: sleeping in leather pants hurts _way _more than sleeping in skinny jeans. The ache added to the pounding in my head, the dull pain that remained in my fractured hand, and the bruise I'd developed where Greg had hit me the previous night. If my Dad could see me now, he'd probably interrogate or ground me until I dropped dead. He hated it when I got hurt. I pulled myself up and sat on the edge of the bed. I flipped open my phone. "Hello?" I whispered.

"Hey, Kurt," my Dad said in that buddy-buddy way of his. "Why are you whispering?"

"Uh… roommate's still asleep," I lied. "What's up? It's only…" I glanced at the wall clock, "nine in the morning."

"Well, I have some news for you," he said momentously.

"Yeah?"

"It's, uh… it's big news. Are you sitting down? I know how you faint when you get too excited…"

"Yes, Dad, I'm sitting. What's going on?"

"You see, Kurt, I'd been thinking about what you said the other week about the garage not doing so good, and wanting to move out of Lima."

My stomach flip-flopped. I hadn't thought much about it myself since we'd gotten to Toledo.

"So, I made a few calls, shopped around, and you'll never guess what I found!"

I wasn't sure I wanted to. "What, Dad?" I gulped.

"I found us a penthouse in New York!"

My breath caught in my throat, and for a moment, I couldn't speak. Well, it wasn't so much that I couldn't speak, it was that my brain seemed to have grown legs and walked away. I couldn't think of anything to say.

"Oh… wow…" I finally managed.

"Well, it's a high rise in the heart of the city, there's a good school by it, and it's right near the play neighborhood or whatever you call it."

"Theatre district," I mumbled absentmindedly. New York.

I wanted to be excited, I really did. No kid in Lima had ever just been offered a New York penthouse by his father before. So why did I feel like I did?

"Kurt? You still there? You didn't faint, did you? Geez, I knew I shoulda told you at home…"

"I'm fine, Dad. I'm still here."

"Well, what do you think?" he sounded anxious and hopeful, as if he were seeking my approval. "I've already made an offer," he told me.

The phone shook in my hand, and despite my best intentions, 'New York, New York' started running through my head. I couldn't wait to tell Mercedes!

But then I looked over at Finn. He was rolled on his side, his hands tucked under his head, his eyes peacefully closed. I thought about his thin pink lips, one's I'd never gotten a chance to kiss, and his many freckles, which I'd never fully gotten a chance to stop and admire.

"We could leave in two weeks time," my Dad said over the phone.

Then I started thinking about my Dad. When I'd talked about moving, I didn't even think he'd been listening. Even if he had been, I'd never expected his to take action on it… and now he'd made an offer on a penthouse in New York. My Dad. The one I hardly ever spoke to because I was too wrapped up in my own problems.

"It's everything you wanted, isn't it Kurt?" he inquired of me.

"Yes," I said quietly, still unable to take my eyes off of Finn, "It _is_ everything I wanted. But it's everything you hate, Dad." No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't conjure up an image of my Dad living in a New York apartment.

"No, it isn't," he protested weakly.

I remained stern. "Yes, it is. Dad, you love your garage. And although I'll never understand why, you love Lima. I'm not going to take that away from you."

Dad sighed in exasperation. "Did you not say you needed to start over, Kurt? That you had no real friends? That everyone hated you? That there was no reason to stay?"

"Dad, listen to me," I said. I wasn't used to being so open with him, but I had to give it a shot. "I know it sounds crazy, but I feel like I _have_ started over. So much has happened over the past few weeks that I feel like a completely different person. And I've realized that I _do_ have real friends here. Nobody hates me! I've got Tina, Mercedes, Quinn, Artie, Brit, Santana, heck, even Puck! And I found reasons to stay, Dad. I have Caroline, Quinn's baby. I'm not letting her grow up without some good fashion sense in her life. And I've got Finn. They're my reasons, because I love them both." My own words surprised me. I hadn't been planning on saying any of that. I'd been thinking more along the lines of 'No thanks, I'm fine here.' and I especially hadn't meant to say I loved Finn! Where did that come from? Dad was silent for a few seconds, and I wondered if he was mad, or if I'd gone too far. Instead, he simply said 'Okay.' Just 'okay,' but somehow, it felt like we were accepting each other back into our lives.

"I should have asked you about it first," Dad said.

"It's my fault," I countered. "We should talk more."

I could practically sense the smile in his voice. "We should. I'll see you tomorrow. And we'll talk about this Finn character when you get home."

I laughed. "Okay, Dad. I'm sorry I'm so difficult to deal with sometimes. I'm working on changing that."

"That's okay," he assured me. "You're my son. I love you, and all of your quirks."

I felt a tear drip down my cheekbone. I think I'd cried more in the past five weeks than I had in my whole life!

"So, you're sure you don't want to move, right?" he asked me.

"I'm sure."

"Okay, Kurt. I love you."

"I love you too, Dad."

I hung up the phone with a newfound feeling of wholeness filling my chest. I snuggled back under the covers (in my leather pants) again until someone came to get Finn and I to visit Caroline and Quinn in the hospital.


	59. Chapter 59

Will's POV

On the Monday after we'd all arrived back in Lima, I was sitting in my usual chair in Figgins's office. Emma had begged to come with me to hear the final verdict of Glee Club, but I'd sent her to wait with all of the kids in the choir room. I'd go and tell them all the news after Figgins had signed off the choir room to Lima's drunks. It was inevitable. We'd been disqualified from competition, and New Directions was over.

"So, Schu," Figgins's hands were intertwined on his desk in front of him, and he was smiling. I guess he'd wanted to bring down the hammer on Glee for a long time coming now. "I am sure you remember our ultimatum involving your Glee Club. If they did not place at Regionals, I would…"

"I know, I know," I held up a hand to stop him. I just didn't want to hear someone say it again.

"Now, your team did not place at Regionals," he was still grinning.

I sadly shook my head, accepting our fate. "Just… give the choir room to Alcoholics Anonymous," I gave in. "We made a deal."

"That's not what I wanted to say, Will!" Figgins stopped me. "_I_ heard from the parents of your Glee kids that the reason they did not place is because they were at the hospital helping Quinn FaBray deliver her baby!"

I felt my eyes widen. "The parents… the parents called you?" I wondered if they'd also told him about the drunken, unsupervised party that had been going on in my suite.

"Yes they did, and I was so impressed with how all of your Glee kids pulled together to become a leak proof unit for the FaBray girl!"

Okay, sometimes I couldn't understand him _at all_.

"What does that mean? What does that have to do with anything?" I asked, starting to get jittery. This was not how I imagined this conversation to be going.

"Will, I was so happy with the story of what your Glee kids did that I have decided to let Glee Club continue using the choir room!"

"YES!" I jumped up from my seat and in my fit of happiness, leaned over Figgins's desk and gave him a hug. "You really mean it?"

"Yes, Schu!"

I landed back in my seat and felt tears of joy streaming down my face. "Thank you so much. You have _no_ idea how much this means to the kids. May I go tell them now?"

"Not yet, Will," Figgins's expression became more serious. "We have another matter discuss: the fact that you used the school's credit to pay for two extra nights at the Hilton Hotel."

I gulped nervously. I had forgotten all about that.

"I understand why you took this course of action," Figgins said, "but I would still like you to pay the money back to the school."

I nodded wildly. "Yes, of course we will. Right away."

"How about having another bake sale?" he suggested. "The cupcakes your Glee kids backed last time were so… addictive…" he licked his lips.

"Okay, Principal Figgins. We'll have that money back to you in no time!" I yelled one last 'thank you' into his office before running off down the hall towards the choir room. I felt like I was going to burst if I didn't tell the kids soon.

When I got there, they were all sitting in their chairs silently, looking forlorn, hopeless, like someone had just killed their puppy.

When I opened the door and they all looked up and saw my face, I didn't even have to say anything. They all leapt up out of their chairs and started singing and dancing around the room.

"Glee Club isn't over!" I said for good measure. They screamed with delight and started hugging each other and jumping up and down. The moment ended in a huge group hug. In the center of it all, Emma took me in her arms and kissed me. It was then that I knew it was the right time.

I took Emma by the arms and sat her down in a chair facing all of the kids.

"All right, everyone," I said over the noise of their celebration. "It's time."

They all immediately snapped out of it, through a chorus of 'Oh, yeah!'s.

"Will, what's going on?" Emma asked from her seat. I looked back and smiled at her before turning back to the kids.

"Places, everyone!"

They assembled themselves in the formation for the choreography we'd worked on in private on Sunday. I stuck my hand in my pocket to make sure I still had the ring. When I was sure everything was set, I took my place in front of the kids, ready for my perfectly planned proposal. I glanced back and smiled at Quinn, who winked at me. She was the one who'd helped me plan it, picked the song, the ring and everything. It felt magical already, like a moment we'd remember for the rest of our lives.

"Ready?" I asked them nervously. I'd only done this once before, and never through song.

"Ready." They all grinned at me reassuringly.

I took a deep breath and counted them in to the biggest moment of my life.

"Five, six, seven, eight…"


	60. Chapter 60

**_To everyone who made it this far..._**

**Thank you guys so much for reading this! I didn't have a lot of free time over the time I was posting this, that's why there are no decent author's notes or anything, but if I post the sequel, I promise promise promise that there will be! So anyway... I hope you enjoyed it and stay tuned for the sequel, which is called Never Say Never. Don't fret, it might not be out for a while, but it'll get there eventually. (And in case anyone was wondering, the title is from the song by The Fray... not Justin Bieber :P )**

**To anybody who read White Knight (the Kurt/Mercedes fic I did) I am considering posting as sequel as requested... and I'll also be starting up a new multichap Kurt/Puck soon. :)**

**Love you guys!**

**xoxoxoxoxo~~ LeJazzHot126**

Epilogue

Kurt's POV

The January snow was falling in white, crystal swirls around the nine of us. We were standing outside of the Barrymore Theatre in Toledo, huddling together to keep from the cold.

Toledo didn't look much different from when we'd been there for Regionals the previous month, but everything _felt _different. Since Figgins had decided not to cancel Glee, we still preformed shows for the school and parents, but we didn't have to compete again until next year. Aside from that, everything had changed in the past month.

There was still half an hour until the curtain call, so I retrieved the tickets from my pocket and started handing them out.

One to Mercedes, who had been there for me through all of what happened. I'd be eternally grateful to her for that.

One to Tina and one to Artie. The two of them were now inseparable, and subject to much of our teasing. Nobody even mentioned Tina's fake stutter anymore.

One to Quinn, who was holding Caroline's baby seat in her arms. Mr. Schuster had insisted that she leave Caroline with him and Miss Pillsbury for the day so she could have a break, but we'd both decided that it would be horrible to deny Quinn's baby girl the right to see a Broadway production, especially Wicked, in her first year. Quinn and I had grown a lot closer over Caroline, even allowing me to give her that long-awaited makeover. As for little my Carrie, well, she was growing fast, and she was at every Glee rehearsal, as our newest honorary member. Her Uncle Finn had given her the baby swing that he'd been saving all this time.

One to Rachel, and one to Puck. They were skipping around the theater gardens holding hands and laughing and talking. They looked like they were totally in love, but oh, contraire! We'd caught them making out in the janitor's closet more times than we could count, but whenever someone asked them about it, the answer would always be 'Oh, no, we're just _friends_.' It became Glee Club's new mission to get them to wake up and smell the coffee, but we'd had no success so far.

Now, as they walked back to join our circle, their hands intertwined with each other's, I gave them a knowing smile.

"You sure you two aren't, you know, like… going out or anything?" I prompted for the millionth time.

"Nope," Rachel smiled. "Just friends." She looked up at Puck and they immediately started kissing.

I glanced at Mercedes and we both laughed. Oh well, they would have to come to their senses someday.

Rachel had actually become a lot less annoying since she'd become 'friends' with Puck. She was relaxed, and she was actually _nice_ to the rest of us. It was kind of creepy, but much appreciated. Every time we performed, Rachel and I always sang 'What Is This Feeling?', but it only seemed like a joke now.

I turned my attention to Finn, who had his arms around me from behind, and was tenderly kissing a line from my ear to my shoulder. I playfully swatted him away. The football players at school at been surprising mild in terms of reaction to the new relationship that Finn and I shared, but we both suspected that this was because Puck had threatened to punch their heads off if they tried anything.

"Not the time, Finn. About to see Wicked, remember?"

I looked up at him and he rolled his eyes and smiled at me. Finn, Carol, my Dad, and I had all spent Christmas together, at Finn's house.

Surprisingly, my Dad was okay with me dating Finn. He had loosened up a lot since our talk that morning when I was in Toledo the first time.

I'd replanted the roses that my 'secret admirer' had given me in front of our house, and thanks to our now giant rose garden, the garage was getting more business… erm, _female_ business…, and Dad was happy again, being in his garage, listening to 'Jack and Diane' on the radio, and fixing his cars. He'd even gone on a date or two.

I gave Finn a ticket and pocketed the last one.

As the rest started talking, I took a moment to think of everyone that couldn't be there.

Brittany and Santana were at a cheerleading competition with their new cheerleading coach, Sandy Ryerson. Much to our collective relief, they'd both come out of the closet and were now something of a power couple around school.

Mr. Schuster and Miss Pillsbury had set a wedding date for the next summer, and they walked down McKinley's halls in a lover's bliss that seemed to rub off on the rest of us.

Gillian, Quinn's maternity nurse, wrote us letters regularly, and Mr. Schuster had sent her an invitation to the wedding.

Greg had been busted by the cops on Document Forgery, after he'd been elected Mayor of Lima. He'd be in jail for a looooong time, but none of us really cared about him anymore.

Sue had been fired because of a colleague harassment suit filed by an anonymous person. Any guesses, anyone?

And, of course, we can't forget about Jacob. His blog was hotter than ever, but he'd given up on his Rachel Berry obsession, product of Rachel's new 'friendship' with Puck.

In the end, everything had worked out just the way I wanted it to, but nothing like I'd expected. It was a good combination, really.

Before I knew it, our half hour was up, and we filed into the theatre, Finn and I walking together in the front, our arms around each other, planning never to let go. The house lights flickered on and off as our last curtain call warning, and we found our front row seats with no problem. As the Overture started and the lights dropped off to nothing, I was struck with a feeling of completeness.

I guess my Mom was right. I did find my true love, but the truth was I'd found many true love's. It wasn't just Finn, it was all of these people. I loved them _all_.

I willed myself to focus as the play started.

And that, in a… hmm, let's say… '_gleeful'_ way of its own… was how that chapter of our lives came to an end.


End file.
